Market News

The US Dollar slipped broadly in Asian trading after the release of the latest economic data from the US lowered expectations of an interest rate increase this year.

The Japanese Yen edged higher against the US Dollar in a flight to save haven currencies after a rout in global equity markets.

Traders are sitting tight this morning as they wait for the Bank of England to announce an expected cut to just a fraction above zero later this year.

The Japanese Yen hit a 1-week trough versus the US Dollar today after the Japanese central bank said that it is considering additional easing measures, which would include yet another negative interest rate cut.

Global markets continued their shakedown on Wednesday with Asian stocks falling to six-week lows on trader concern that central banks won’t be able to sufficiently stimulate economic growth.

The US Dollar recovered some of its previous day’s losses which occurred after one Federal Reserve Bank official cautioned the Fed on removing economic support too quickly.

Fed Governor Lael Brainard’s speech on Monday supported the view that the U.S. Federal Reserve would leave interest rates unchanged next week, a note which helped global markets rebound off their recent lows.

The Japanese Yen took the lead among its peers in Monday trading as investors took flight to safety in the wake of a sell-off in global stocks.

Asian stocks fell sharply on Monday, their largest setback since June, on renewed fears of a U.S. interest rate hike as early as next week.

There will be a similar news schedule this week compared to last week, dominated by key central bank actions concerning the British Pound and Swiss Franc.

In the early trading session in Asia, the US Dollar eased away from earlier highs against the Japanese Yen and looks to post a loss for the week as uncertainty grows regarding the Fed’s monetary policy.

The Japanese Yen managed to hold steady against the US Dollar in Tuesday trading and keeping the recent gains following yet another policy speech from a Bank of Japan official.

Oil prices soared more than 1.5 percent during Thursday’s Asian session after U.S. crude stocks dropped by 12.1 million barrels last week, according to data from the American Petroleum Institute.

The Pound Sterling was under some pressure but remained close to the recently struck 7-week peak versus the US Dollar as FX traders await Mark Carney’s testimony at the Inflation Report hearings for an indication of the timing on the next Bank of England interest rate cut.

Asian shares traded mixed during Wednesday’s session, following Tuesday’s reports from the U.S. Institute for Supply Management (ISM) that the non-manufacturing purchasing manager index (PMI) fell from 55.5 in July to 51.4 in August, its lowest point since 2010.