From Australia today:
Entree at 0030GMT:
- BoP Current Account balance for Q4, expected is -10.0bn, prior was -12.7bn
- Also, the ‘net exports as a % of GDP’ for Q4, expected is 0.7% and prior was 0.7% also
The main course is also at 0030GMT, Building approvals for January:
- For the m/m, expected is 0.5%, prior was -2.9%
- For the y/y, expected is +24.0%, prior was +21.8%
Dessert follows at 0330GMT, with the outcome of the Reserve Bank Board Meeting announced. The RBA has recently made clear its neutral monetary policy bias, thus there is no change in the cash rate target expected today (OIS pricing in a 2% chance of a 0.25% cut). The AUD has been resilient in the face of the Ukraine turmoil, which is an interesting response. The heavy selling late last week seems to be responsible for its lack of inclination to fall further – it needs some shorts to unwind before falling further or a fresh selling impetus. A sideways sort to small grind higher of bounce (what we appear to be seeing) will unwind some shorts. Bids remain from longer term timeframe market players to help support it.
