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The Mid-Week Wrap – Asian Markets and Stocks

The last week of the month usually is pretty quiet. Is it also the case this week?

For the U.S Dollar

It was a quiet start to the week on the economic data front. The markets needed until Tuesday for consumer confidence figures that failed to impress.

We saw the Dollar under pressure at the start of the week, with last week’s PMI numbers raising the chances of a FED rate hike in the 1st half of the year.

The shift in sentiment saw demand for the Dollar ease early in the week. Following FED Chair Powell’s testimony, the markets had anticipated a resilient U.S economy. Recent economic indicators suggested otherwise, with the U.S private sector contracting in February.

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Throw in the rising number of cases of the coronavirus and the CDC’s outlook and the U.S economy also faces headwinds.

Through the remainder of the week, inflation and personal spending figures on Friday will garner plenty of attention. Personal spending figures will be of particular interest as it will indicate any consumer concerns over the virus.

Ahead of the numbers, 2nd estimate GDP numbers for the 4th quarter are due out along with durable goods orders on Thursday.

Expect the durable goods orders to have a greater impact, as the markets look for coronavirus impact on demand.

For the EUR

It was also a relatively quiet start to the week. Germany’s business confidence 2nd estimate GDP numbers were in focus.

While 2nd estimate GDP figures were in line with 1st estimate, there was an improvement in business sentiment.

February’s IFO survey came ahead of the spread of the coronavirus through Europe, however, limiting any upside for the EUR.

Over the remainder of the week, the focus will shift to consumer spending and 4th quarter GDP numbers out of France. There are also unemployment numbers out of Germany to also consider.

For now, we’ve seen the EUR find support as the sentiment shifts towards the U.S economy. Ultimately, however, the Eurozone economy remains more at risk to a marked slowdown that that of the U.S, which suggests the upside to be limited.

A more material spread of the virus across the U.S, however, would alter that outlook.

For the Pound

It’s a particularly quiet week on the economic data front and there have been no material stats to provide support.

We saw the Pound bounce back to $1.30 levels on Tuesday following the EU member states desire to form an ambitious trade agreement with Britain.

That comes with strings attached, however, which Britain is unwilling to agree to.

On Thursday, the British government is due to announce its starting terms, which will give an idea of just how far apart the 2-sides are.

Expect reaction to influence the Pound over the remainder of the week.

Stocks go down due to the virus in an environment of no macroeconomic data releases. In the meantime, how have the commodity currencies reacted to the recent developments in the markets?

We saw the commodity currencies fair better in the early part of the week, in spite of the risk aversion.

This was largely due to the shift in sentiment towards the U.S economy and monetary policy

That being said, it’s still been a bearish week for the commodity currencies.

For the Aussie Dollar, new CAPEX figures for the 4th quarter failed to impress this morning.

With business investment on the slide, any slide in consumer spending would add further pressure on the RBA to make a move.

In the last meeting, the RBA had raised some concerns over the likely impact of the coronavirus on the global economy. Since then, we can expect that concern to have spiked as the virus reaches new countries.

It certainly looks set for a particularly dovish RBA next week, which should limit any upside for the Aussie Dollar.

Things are not much better for the Kiwi Dollar.

Retail sales rose by just 0.7% in the 4th quarter, following a 1.7% rise in the 3rd, with the numbers coming ahead of key stats on Thursday.

While January trade data delivered support, with exports to China on the rise once more in January, it was business confidence that weighed.

The trade figures failed to capture the effects of the extended Chinese New Year and quarantines across the country. February’s figures are expected to be quite dire, however, if business confidence numbers are anything to go by.

That leaves the Kiwi under immense pressure, with economic disruption expected to continue beyond the 1st quarter.

A slight decline in all of the commodity currency charts. Meanwhile, how have the major Asian countries fared during this period? I assume they have been hit the most by the coronavirus.

For the Japanese Yen

We saw the Japanese Yen find renewed interest this week, at the expense of the Greenback. With risk aversion continuing to plague the markets, the rise in the number of cases in the U.S and weak data provided the upside.

The markets had previously moved away from the Yen over concerns that the region would be harder hit by the virus.

This is likely to be the case, however, which should limit any return to ¥107 – 108 levels against the Greenback.

On the economic data front, retail sales and industrial production figures due out on Friday will unlikely reflect the effects of the virus.

Dire numbers, however, would suggest that the BoJ will need to make a move of some sort…

For the rest of the Asian Majors

Unsurprisingly, the rest of the Asian majors have struggled in the week.

We’ve seen the Taiwanese Dollar, Singapore Dollar, Korean Won, and Chinese Yuan struggle as disruption to trade is expected to hurt the respective economies.

Monetary and fiscal policy support has been delivered by a number of central banks in the region.

Uncertainty over the time frame involved, however, and how bad it could get continues to pressure the majors. This will likely continue near-term or at least until the pace of the global spread abates.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

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