Category Archive: 4.) Marc to Market

High Anxiety: China’s Covid and US Inflation

Overview: Anxiety is running high. Rather than ease its Covid restrictions, a surge in cases is seeing more areas in China come under restrictions. The US reports CPI and of the ten reports this year, seven of them have been stronger than expected.

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Markets Consolidate After US Election

Overview: It is difficult to see the impact of the US midterm election in the immediate aftermath. The dollar is stronger against all the major currencies, but this seems to be mostly position adjusting ahead of tomorrow’s CPI report after a pullback in recent days.

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The Dollar Edges Higher

Overview: After selling off amid speculation that China’s Covid policy was going to ease, we expected the greenback to recover and consolidate ahead of Thursday’s CPI. This did not materialize yesterday, but the dollar has come back better bid today. Equity markets are mostly firmer, but nearly all the large markets, but China/Hong Kong, rising in the Asia Pacific region. Europe’s Stoxx 600 is posting small gains. It is the third session in a row...

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Risk Appetites Survive China Keeping Zero Covid Policy

Overview: Chinese officials denied plans to end the zero-Covid policy and after a brief wobble, risk assets have traded better. Asia Pacific equities rallied, led by Hong Kong and mainland stocks that trade in Hong Kong. Europe’s Stoxx 600 opened lower but recovered and is around 0.5% higher after the 1.8% gain before the weekend. US futures are firm. Benchmark 10-year yields are mostly 2-4 bp softer in Europe and the US. The dollar is mixed. The...

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Can the Dollar Sell Off Much More Before the CPI?

The apparent hawkishness of Fed Chair Powell's comments at the press conference following the FOMC's fourth consecutive rate hike extended the dollar's recovery, which had begun in late October. 

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The Week Ahead: How Sticky is US Inflation and How Soft is China’s?

There are three potential inflection points. The first is a pause from the Fed; if nothing else, Powell signaled it was too early to think about it. The second is for the Bank of Japan to change monetary policy. Governor Kuroda has signaled that it is not time. Conventional wisdom is there will not be a change until Kuroda's term ends next April. However, we note that the surveys suggest economists and BOJ inflation forecasts for next year have...

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US Dollar Offered Ahead of the Employment Report

Overview: Risk appetites have returned but may be tested by the US jobs report. News of progress with US auditors in China helped lift Hong Kong and Chinese equities. Most of the large bourses in the region also rose. Europe’s Stoxx 600 is up a little more than 1% near midday after shedding 1.3% over the past two sessions. US futures also are trading with an upside bias. Benchmark 10-year yields are mostly a little softer today. The 10-year US...

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Fed’s Hawkishness Roils the Capital Markets

Overview: The Fed delivered the expected 75 bp rate hike, and although it says it will take into account the cumulative effect of past hikes and their lagged impact, the takeaway has been a hawkish message. Risk appetites have evaporated. The dollar is stronger, while stocks and bonds have been sold. Japan’s markets were spared due to the national holiday, but the other large markets in the area were sold, lead by the 3% decline in the Hang Seng....

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It is not So Much about the Fed’s hike Today but the Forward Guidance

Overview: A consolidative tone has emerged ahead of the outcome of the FOMC meeting later today. The focus is not so much on the 75 bp rate hike, but on its forward guidance. Many expect the Fed to signal it will return to a 50 bp move next month, but we are not convinced that it will go beyond indicating that 50 bp or 75 bp will be debated in December, depending on the data. The market has a 5% terminal rate discounted. The Fed does not need to...

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RBA Hikes by 25 bp, Chinese Stocks Surge, and the Greenback Trades Heavier

Overview: Risk appetites have returned today. Bonds and stocks are advancing, while the dollar is better offered. Unsourced claims that Beijing has formed a committee to assess how to exit the zero-Covid policy sent Chinese shares sharply higher. An index of mainland companies list in Hong Kong jumped nearly 7% and closed up almost 5.5%. The Hang Seng surged 5.2%, while all the large markets in the region advanced. Europe’s Stoxx 600 recovered...

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The Dollar Returns from the Weekend Bid

The dollar has come back from the weekend bid. After the ECB and BOJ meetings last week, the focus has shifted back to the US where the FOMC meeting concludes in the middle of the week and the October employment report is out ahead of the weekend. Sterling and the yen are the weakest performers among the G10 currencies and are off 0.45%-0.50%. The Antipodeans are performing best and are straddling little changed levels.

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November 2022 Monthly

With this month's hike, the Federal Reserve would have raised overnight rates by 300 bp while doubling the pace that its balance sheet is shrinking over the past 100 days. The US economy is the largest in the world, and US interest rates and the dollar are vital benchmarks.

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RBA, FOMC, BOE Meetings Featured while the Greenback’s Recovery can be Extended

The week ahead is important from a macro perspective. The data highlights include China's PMI, eurozone preliminary October CPI and Q3 GDP, and the US (and Canadian) employment reports. In addition, the Federal Reserve meeting on November 2 is sandwiched between the Reserve Bank of Australia meeting and the Bank of England meeting.

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BOJ Doesn’t Surprise, but EMU does with October CPI and Q3 Growth

Bonds and stocks are being sold ahead of the weekend.  Poor corporate earnings and higher inflation in Japan and Europe are weighing on sentiment.  The dollar is mostly higher. Hong Kong and mainland China led large Asia Pacific markets lower.  India and Singapore were notable exceptions.

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Dollar Slump Stalls Ahead of ECB Meeting

The dollar’s recent losses have left it stretched on a near-term basis after today’s ECB meeting, the focus will shift to the Federal Reserve, next week’s meeting, and the employment report. The greenback is trading with a firmer bias against the G10 currencies, while the emerging market currencies are more mixed.

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Dollar Slumps, Yuan Rallies by Most this Year amid Intervention Talk

Overview: The US dollar is having one of toughest days of the year. It has been sold across the board and taken out key levels like parity in the euro, $1.15 in sterling, and CAD1.36. The Chinese yuan surged over 1%. Chinese officials promised healthy bond and stock markets.

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Consolidative Tuesday

Overview: The yen and sterling are trading quietly after the recent drama, but with the Party Congress ending, the Chinese yuan has been permitted to fall faster. It approached the 2% band today and its loss of about 0.65% today makes it the weakest among the emerging market currencies.

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BOJ Injects More Volatility, while UK’s Tory Party Leadership Contest may be Over Today

Overview:  Japanese efforts to curb the weakness of the yen provided drama today. What many suspect was intervention before the weekend was wearing off and officials may have sold dollars again today in front of JPY150.

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Macro and Prices: The Week Ahead

There are five macro highlights in the week ahead. After providing a thumbnail sketch of them, we will look more closely at the price action of the leading dollar-pairs. We suspect that the dollar is in the process of carving out a top amid ideas that a 5.0% terminal Fed funds rate is discounted.

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Greenback Holds Above JPY150, while BOJ goes MIA

Overview: The continued surge in US rates and inability of the equity market to sustain gains saw the post-Truss sterling rally unwind amid a broader recovery of the dollar. Sterling has been sold to new lows for the week.

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