Forex news for Asia trading for Wednesday 27 January 2021
- Moody's on the EU-China agreement - mixed impact
- China has made plans to cut steel output in 2021
- China says it hopes the US will stick with a 'one-China' principle
- The White House will begin regular COVID-19 briefings again from Wednesday
- South Korea & the US have agreed the North Korean nuclear issue is an urgent matter
- Goldman Sachs still like CAD and AUD against the USD
- Federal Reserve FOMC meeting today - preview
- China Industrial profits for December +20.1% y/y (prior +15.5%)
- PBOC sets USD/ CNY reference rate for today at 6.4665
- FX option expiries for Wednesday January 27 at the 10am NY cut
- US House of Representatives March recess has been cancelled - possible stimulus votes
- Australia - NAB business confidence, December 2020: 4 (prior 13) and conditions 14 (prior 7)
- Australia inflation data - headline CPI 0.9% q/q (expected 0.7%)
- UK data - BRC Shop Price Index for January -2.2% y/y (prior -1.8%)
- Bank of Japan Governor Kuroda to speak Wednesday from 0200GMT
- New US Treasury Secretary Yellen highlighted coordination with the Fed
- Australia - Westpac leading index for December: +0.12% m/m (vs. prior +0.68%)
- RBA meeting next week - preview ("Next steps for the RBA")
- Coronavirus - UK to require returnees to hotel quarantine from 30 countries
- Australia weekly consumer confidence 111.2
- US to purchase another 200m doses of coronavirus vaccines
- Trade ideas thread - Wednesday 27 January 2021
- Private oil data shows a hefty draw (small build was expected) in headline crude oil inventory
The US Federal Reserve Federal Open Market Committee meeting will conclude today with the January statement followed a half-hour later by Chair Powell's news conference. Previews are linked above - policy is very likely to remain unchanged, but see bullets above for more.
Ranges in major FX have been very small with the net result being a slightly higher US dollar.
News flow was light.
On the data docket we had the Q4 2020 instalment of Australian inflation, slightly higher than median expectations but still way, way short of the Reserve Bank of Australia target band, as it has been for half a decade. Australian business confidence (for December) released at the same time dropped while the more objective business 'conditions' indicator showed marked improvement.
AUD has dribbled a little lower since the data releases after highs just over 0.7760. NZD/USD, Cable, EUR/USD are all tracking a similar pattern. Yen and CAD are losers also.
Oil prices ticked higher following data from the US late on Tuesday showing an unexpected draw in headline US crude inventories (see bullets above).
