Strong week for Japanese yen bulls likely due to a shift in risk sentiment and despite weak Japanese economic updates.
Japanese Headlines and Economic data
Monday:
- No Japanese headlines or economic data.
Tuesday:
- BOJ signals readiness to combine steps if more stimulus needed
- Bank of Japan core CPI at 0.5% vs. 0.4% previous
- China central bank likely to pause reserve cuts, but policy easing on track: sources – this news sparked a rise in global risk-off sentiment on the idea that China pulling back stimulative action would also slow down the global economy; risk-off sentiment is typically supportive of the Japanese yen.
Wednesday:
- Japan all industries activity index is down -0.2 to 106.00 in February
- The Japanese yen fell broadly during the U.S. session despite a lack of catalysts. It’s likely this was due to U.S. dollar strength, which was rallying off of euro and Aussie weakness.
Thursday:
- BOJ says super-low rates to last another year, giving first timeframe
- Highlights – BOJ Governor Kuroda comments at news conference – As usual, the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy meeting had little to no effect on Japanese yen pairs. The Japanese yen continued its rally higher despite the dovish commentary on the economy and that rates will remain ultra low until at least 2020.
Friday:
