- China raised rates by 25 bps overnight
- USD/CNY fixed higher as PBOC signals intent to keep hot money out
- Fed’s Duke: November move not a done deal
- AUD: Mining tax back in the headlines
- BOJ Nishimura: JPY rise major economic risk
- Nikkei falls by over 2%, other bourses -1%. Gold steady after 2.5% fall overnight.
- NIESR warns ahead of UK spending cuts
The market opened on a very risk averse note after big moves overnight. EUR/USD opened near its NY lows and fell again after the Duke comments. A Japanese bank bought significant amounts of EUR/USD near the 1.3700 low and that proved to be the base for the session. Despite the Nikkei continuing to fall, normal risk averse trades like EUR/JPY and EUR/CHF managed mild gains on the session. Ranges: EUR/USD 1.3700/77, EUR/CHF 1.3308/47 and EUR/JPY 111.59/112.19
USD/JPY has drifted slowly through the session with the market concious on one hand of possible BOJ intervention yet also aware of heavy selling towards 82.00 from real money funds and Japanese corporates. More tight ranges loom it seems. Ranges: 81.33/66
AUD/USD fell in early Tokyo as the lower Nikkei and talk of foreign-bond redemptions encouraged heavy AUD/JPY sellling. This petered out once the EUR/USD bounced and since then we’ve had a gradual short-covering session. Ranges: AUD/USD .9665/.9754
Cable has been quiet ahead of what’s expected to be a busy London session. Talk of good sized bids starting at 1.5610 through 1.5550. Ranges: Cable 1.5655/1.5724, EUR/GBP .8742/65.
