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3 Apr 2014
Asia Recap: Broad-based buying interest in the US Dollar
FXStreet (Bali) - Two of the currencies most punished by investors in the last 12 months, that is, the Japanese Yen and the Australian Dollar, replicated old poor performances by ending the Asian session as the main laggards.
The USD/JPY upward extension saw the 104.00 broken in late afternoon Asian trade, recording a new two and a half month high of 104.07, with exporter offers starting circa 104.20 in good size, market sources report.
AUD/USD traded heavy from the get-go, with mixed Australia data (sales marginally below exp / trade surplus above exp) serving as an excuse to target support at 0.9215, with stops reported below 0.92. Later on the day, once a speech by RBA Governor Stevens, which omitted mentioning the AUD, was out of the way, traders added pressure for a possible eventual break of 0.92.
The NZD/USD suffered further losses as well, posting a third day in the red after a slide through Wed's low of 0.8546 which now targets the area 0.85/0.8520. The recent sharp decline in dairy product prices has been a factor that has led perma bulls to take profits at such hefty levels.
With regards to the British Pound, it enjoyed a decent performance despite the limited flows it usually has in Asia. Traders bought the UK currency in response to hawkish headlines by Governor of the Bank of England Carney, who was quoted in the UK newspaper Northern, saying that interest rates could increase ahead of the next General Election, comments that surprised some.
The rest of currencies, including the Euro, also traded slightly softer vs the USD, ahead of the ECB meeting. Kathy Lien, Co-Founder at BKAssetManagement, wrote a note to clients, saying that "while the euro responded positively to the last 4 monetary policy decisions, the recent deterioration in data leads us to believe that Draghi's comments will drive the euro lower and not higher.
Main headlines in Asia
Australia AiG Performance of Services Index dipped from previous 55.2 to 48.9 in March
China's Premier Li sends third easing signal - Nomura
Australian retail sales, trade balance mixed
China Non-manufacturing PMI: 54.5 (March) vs previous 55
BoE Carney not ruling out rate hikes ahead of general election
PBOC set USD/CNY at 6.1520 vs 6.1493
RBA Stevens: Promising early signs that can manage mining handover
RBA Stevens: Unemployment rate will go up a little further
The USD/JPY upward extension saw the 104.00 broken in late afternoon Asian trade, recording a new two and a half month high of 104.07, with exporter offers starting circa 104.20 in good size, market sources report.
AUD/USD traded heavy from the get-go, with mixed Australia data (sales marginally below exp / trade surplus above exp) serving as an excuse to target support at 0.9215, with stops reported below 0.92. Later on the day, once a speech by RBA Governor Stevens, which omitted mentioning the AUD, was out of the way, traders added pressure for a possible eventual break of 0.92.
The NZD/USD suffered further losses as well, posting a third day in the red after a slide through Wed's low of 0.8546 which now targets the area 0.85/0.8520. The recent sharp decline in dairy product prices has been a factor that has led perma bulls to take profits at such hefty levels.
With regards to the British Pound, it enjoyed a decent performance despite the limited flows it usually has in Asia. Traders bought the UK currency in response to hawkish headlines by Governor of the Bank of England Carney, who was quoted in the UK newspaper Northern, saying that interest rates could increase ahead of the next General Election, comments that surprised some.
The rest of currencies, including the Euro, also traded slightly softer vs the USD, ahead of the ECB meeting. Kathy Lien, Co-Founder at BKAssetManagement, wrote a note to clients, saying that "while the euro responded positively to the last 4 monetary policy decisions, the recent deterioration in data leads us to believe that Draghi's comments will drive the euro lower and not higher.
Main headlines in Asia
Australia AiG Performance of Services Index dipped from previous 55.2 to 48.9 in March
China's Premier Li sends third easing signal - Nomura
Australian retail sales, trade balance mixed
China Non-manufacturing PMI: 54.5 (March) vs previous 55
BoE Carney not ruling out rate hikes ahead of general election
PBOC set USD/CNY at 6.1520 vs 6.1493
RBA Stevens: Promising early signs that can manage mining handover
RBA Stevens: Unemployment rate will go up a little further