The forex trading headlines for Asia trading today, Thursday June 20
- HSBC ‘Flash’ Manufacturing PMI for June in China 48.3 (vs. 49.1 expected) (Worst for 9 months, but click on the link for more details)
- On the China cash market, the overnight (average rate) today is above 12.5% (yesterday’s average was 7.87%)
- And the seven-day repo 10.96% vs. 8.26 yesterday
Japan International Transactions in Securities for week ending June 14:
- Japan Buying Foreign Bonds Y -402.5B (prior week was Y -394.4 B, revised)
- Japan Buying Foreign Stocks Y -129.9B (prior week was Y -221.8B)
- Foreign Buying Japan Bonds Y 313.3B (prior week was Y -280.0B)
- Foreign Buying Japan Stocks Y -3.6B (prior week was Y 115.4B, revised)
- Reuters Tankan: Japan manufacturers index +15 in June (vs. +7 prior) and more here too
Bank of Japan offered to buy JGBs from market
- Bought 500B yen in 5-10 yr debt
- Bought 500B yen in 3 – 5 yr debt
- Bought 100B yen in 1 – 3 yr debt
- New Zealand Q1 GDP: +0.3% q/q (vs. +0.5% expected)
- New Zealand Q1 GDP: 2.4% y/y (vs. +2.5% expected)
- Reports of Asian central banks intervening today
- RBA Bulletin June Quarter 2013 released today (PDF)
- Moody’s on Abenomics – More incentives needed to boost business investment
- Bank of England King: UK needs more Bank of England stimulus as recovery is not assured
Follow-through from the FOMC/Bernanke conference was continued Australian dollar selling into the morning before some stability took it back above 0.9300 briefly. It sold off again a touch, and then dropped 40 points to new lows on the HSBC Flash manufacturing PMI release. Bounced to 0.9280/85 and then again settled awaiting fresh direction from Europe. 62/67 as I type. Chinese cash markets again tightened.
NZD/USD sold off a touch after the lower than expected GDP release, bounced 35 points and then ticked back towards its lows in a choppy fashion.
GBP/USD got below its US lows in a small range-day. EUR/USD, too, had a relatively narrow range, spending the day 1.3265-00.
USD/JPY fell early in the session, finding support ahead of 96.00 and trading to 70/75. It was a choppy day for it too, back as lows as 0.96.20 and then a revisit to 96.75.
