New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Softer Dollar
December 28, 2017
The dollar is mostly softer. Stocks show little net movement. Ten-year sovereign debt yields have risen, and gold is firmer. Japanese industrial production grew 0.6% on month and 3.7% on year in November, prompting the first upgraded assessment in 13 months to “picking up” from “signs of picking up.” Japanese retail sales leaped 1.9% in […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Scant Data and News as Yearend Draws Closer
December 27, 2017
The euro rose slightly against the dollar and yen. Oil settled back but remains above $59.00 per barrel. Gold is littloe changed, and 10-year U.S., German and British sovereign debt yields are marginally lower. In contrast to the lower Richmond Fed manufacturing index in December, the Dallas Fed manufacturing index jumped 10.3 points to a […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Boxing Day
December 26, 2017
The extended Christmas holiday left many markets closed, including Britain, many Continental European centers, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Commodity prices, both oil and precious metals, are higher. Released Japanese data showed An unexpected further drop in the jobless rate to 2.7% along with a 1.2% on-year advance in unemployment. A 0.1% uptick […] More
Foreign Exchange Insights and Next Week
Next Week
December 22, 2017
Holidays: Most markets — Japan being a notable exception — will be closed Monday for Christmas. The Emperor’s Birthday holiday in Japan on December 23rd falls on a Saturday and so will not be associated with a closed business day there this year. In several countries markets will remain closed on Tuesday for either Christmas […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Only Marginal Net Dollar Movement on a Newsworthy Friday
December 22, 2017
The approaching Christmas holiday, which has some markets closing early today, appears to have muted changes in the dollar, which has moved up 0.3% against the loonie, 0.2% relative to the euro, Swissie, and peso, and 0.1% vis-a-vis the yen and kiwi while slipping 0.2% relative to the Aussie dollar, 0.1% against the yuan and […] More
Central Bank Watch
Bank of Japan Maintains Status Quo
December 21, 2017
The Bank of Japan has a stimulative monetary policy that goes by the title of “quantitative and qualitative easing(QQE) with yield control.” The unchanged settings at the final scheduled policy review of 2018 A Policy-Balance interest rate of negative 0.1% A target 10-year JGB yield of “around 1.0%” JGB purchases of roughly 80 trillion yen […] More
Central Bank Watch
Czech National Bank
December 21, 2017
The CNB by a 5-2 margin voted to retain the interest rate structure, with a main 2-week repo rate of 0.50% flanked by a 0.05% discount rate and a 1.0% Lombard rate. There had previously been increases in the repo rate of 25 basis points in early November and 20 bps last August, and the […] More
New Overnight Developments Abroad - Daily Update
Tax Bill Aftermath
December 21, 2017
The most prominent market reaction to the U.S. tax overhaul has been the rise in long-term interest rates, although the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield settled back two basis points in overnight futures trading. The 10-year gilt and 10-year German bund yields rose another 2 and 1 basis points. Congress is not trying to avert a […] More
Central Bank Watch
Swedish Riksbank
December 20, 2017
Sweden’s repo rate will stay at negative 0.50% after a unanimous vote of the central bank executive board. It was zero percent from October 2014 until a 10-basis point cut in February 2015 pushed policy into negative interest rate territory. Three more cuts over the ensuing year depressed the repo rate to -0.5% in February […] More
Central Bank Watch
Bank of Thailand
December 20, 2017
By unanimous vote, the one-day repo rate was left at 1.50%, which has been its level since back-to-back 25-basis point cuts in March and April of 2015. Thailand’s monetary policy committee members are in no hurry to start raising interest rates even though projected GDP growth was revised up 0.1 percentage point to 3.9% this […] More
