Sudden Weakening of Chinese Yuan Stands Out in Asian Dealings

The sudden weakening of the Chinese yuan stands out in Asian dealings this morning. USD/CNY 7.20 has been a red line since mid-January as Chinese authorities seek to balance easy monetary policy without triggering a capital flight. They defended this threshold through daily fixings and state banks being ordered to sell dollars when needed.

Rising Dollar Spooked Bitcoin, But Not the Entire Crypto Market

The cryptocurrency market closed lower on Thursday, but little changed from the $2.53 trillion market cap over 24 hours. However, the internal dynamics are mixed. Bitcoin loses 1.5% and retreats to $66K, while Ethereum hovers around $3500 (-0.25%), BNB and DOGE are up over 5%, and XRP is up around 4%.

Pound Drops to 1-Month Low After Flat Retail Sales

The British pound has extended its losses on Friday. In the European session, GBP/USD is trading at 1.2600, down 0.45%. Earlier, the pound fell as low as 1.2584, its lowest level since March 20.

Canadian Dollar Dips as Retail Sales Disappoint

The Canadian dollar has extended its losses on Friday. USD/CAD is trading at 1.3569 in the North American session, up 0.29%.

Sunset Market Commentary

Wednesday’s Fed dots & Powell’s press conference brought a diffuse message, hampering an unequivocal market reaction. Higher/above neutral growth, a material uplift in especially this year’s inflation forecast and the unemployment rate holding below NAIRU contrasted with the interest rate dots confirming the scenario of 75 bps rate cuts this year.

NZ Dollar Extends Losses after Mfg. PMI Contraction

The New Zealand dollar continues to lose ground and has dropped more than 1% since Wednesday. In the European session, NZD/USD is trading at 0.6094, down 0.59%.

Euro Stabilizes, ECB Starts Talking Rate Cuts

The euro is steady on Friday, after sustaining sharp losses a day earlier due to the US inflation report. In the North American session, EUR/USD is trading at 1.0893, up 0.09%.

Will Canada's CPI Data Rescue the Wounded Loonie?

At its latest gathering on March 6, the Bank of Canada (BoC) decided to keep interest rates unchanged at 5% as expected, but the statement accompanying the decision and Governor Tiff Macklem himself signaled concerns about high underlying price pressures, with the Governor adding that more progress is needed before they start considering rate cuts.

RBA Could Maintain a Degree of Hawkishness

The RBA kicks off next week’s busy central bank meetings’ schedule with its Tuesday gathering. Contrary to both the Fed and ECB being on the cusp of cutting interest rates, RBA members considered hiking rates in early February before agreeing to keep the official cash rate unchanged at 4.35%. Could this meeting bring a change in RBA’s rates outlook?

Week Ahead – Five Central Banks: Who Will Hike, Who Will Not Cut?

The upcoming week will undoubtedly be one of the busiest, not to mention the most important, of the year for investors with five major central bank decisions on the way, along with a plethora of economic data. The highlight, however, looks set to be the Federal Reserve’s decision on Wednesday, as expectations of looser monetary policy in the world’s largest economy have been fuelling the incredible stock market rally of late.