24 Mar 2014
Asia Recap: A resilient AUD shrugs off China's PMI miss
FXStreet (Bali) - The Japanese Yen was the under-performer in Asia, while the Australian Dollar, despite a worse-than-expected China HSBC PMI, managed to eliminate losses to end unchanged vs Friday's close.
AUD/USD opened Asia circa 0.91 with the range for the session comprised between 0.9046 and 0.9112. The upside gap at the open was mainly driven by stop loss hunt practices, market sources suggested, although solid selling interest kept a lid on AUD appreciation, leading to a decline towards 0.9075/80 before the disappointing Chinese data stroke the rate down to 0.9046; on that slide though, the market found its bottom for the session, and a decent recovery back towards 0.9080 was seen. Buying interest in the Aussie remains quite remarkable, refusing to fall on recent negative inputs, the latest being the miss in China's HSBC PMI.
USD/JPY traded firmer, opening at 102.21 and heading north to find a session high of 102.55 before price stabilized circa 102.45. The strong gains posted by the Nikkei 225 index (over 2%) acted as the main factor supporting prices. With regards to the rest of G10 currencies, including the Kiwi, all exhibited a slow rhythm, with traders awaiting the opening of the London session.
Main headlines in Asia
Hamada calls for BoJ to stand ready for further easing
ECB's Constancio rules out threshold-based guidance
Moderate changes in specs positioning - TDS
China's Vice FinMin: growth of 7-8% in line with real capacity
Russia to allow international monitors in Ukraine
China faces downward economic pressure - China's Premier
China show allow corporate defaults - PBOC Deputy Governor
PBOC sets USD/CNY at 6.1452 vs 6.1475
HSBC China Manufacturing PMI at 8-month low
AUD/USD opened Asia circa 0.91 with the range for the session comprised between 0.9046 and 0.9112. The upside gap at the open was mainly driven by stop loss hunt practices, market sources suggested, although solid selling interest kept a lid on AUD appreciation, leading to a decline towards 0.9075/80 before the disappointing Chinese data stroke the rate down to 0.9046; on that slide though, the market found its bottom for the session, and a decent recovery back towards 0.9080 was seen. Buying interest in the Aussie remains quite remarkable, refusing to fall on recent negative inputs, the latest being the miss in China's HSBC PMI.
USD/JPY traded firmer, opening at 102.21 and heading north to find a session high of 102.55 before price stabilized circa 102.45. The strong gains posted by the Nikkei 225 index (over 2%) acted as the main factor supporting prices. With regards to the rest of G10 currencies, including the Kiwi, all exhibited a slow rhythm, with traders awaiting the opening of the London session.
Main headlines in Asia
Hamada calls for BoJ to stand ready for further easing
ECB's Constancio rules out threshold-based guidance
Moderate changes in specs positioning - TDS
China's Vice FinMin: growth of 7-8% in line with real capacity
Russia to allow international monitors in Ukraine
China faces downward economic pressure - China's Premier
China show allow corporate defaults - PBOC Deputy Governor
PBOC sets USD/CNY at 6.1452 vs 6.1475
HSBC China Manufacturing PMI at 8-month low