The latest currency trading survey from the Bank for International Settlements
Daily currency trading slipped to $5.1 trillion from $5.4 trillion in the April 2013, according to the latest numbers from the Bank for International Settlements.
The survey is only released once every three years.
What might skew the number is the measuring. Sure, the US dollar figure is lower but since April 2013, the trade weighted US dollar index from Bloomberg is up 16.8%. That would skew the value of trades in something like EUR/JPY to be of a lower 'value'.
The BIS notes as much in the survey, saying "the appreciation of the US dollar between 2013 and 2016 reduced the US dollar value of turnover in currencies other than the US dollar." They say that if the dollar value had been constant, turnover would have risen 4%.
Another skew is that the report is sampled in a particular month. In April 2013, there was some high yen volatility due to BOJ activity. The most recent April was quieter.
The other big battle is for market share. London's market share fell to 37% from 41%.
China's ascendancy is the also notable as yuan trading now equals 4% of global trading, down from 2% in 2013. It's now the eighth-most traded currency, passing the Mexican peso.
Other highlights:
- The US dollar was on 88% of all trades vs 87% in prior survey
- EUR share down to 31% from 33%
- Yen share 22% vs 23%
- GBP, CAD, SEK and NOK gained share
- Spot market trading activity fell by 19% to $1.7 trillion per day in April 2016
EME stands for emerging market currencies, collectively.
