Overview: With the market nearly ruling out a 50 bp hike by the
Federal Reserve on February 1, the interest rate adjustment appears to have
largely run its course. This may be helping to ease the selling pressure on the
greenback. The general tone today is one of consolidation. There is a modest
risk-off bias today. Although Japanese stocks advanced, China, Hong Kong, and
South Korean equities slipped lower. Europe's Stoxx 600 is snapping a four-day
advance, and US futures are trading with a heavier bias. Benchmark 10-year
yields are firmer, with the US Treasury near 3.55%, up nearly 14 bp from the
pre-weekend low.
The market has greeted news of stronger than expected Chinese Q4 GDP and
December data with a jaundiced eye. The yuan has seen its largest two-day retreat
in a couple of months. The PBOC is preparing the local money markets for next
week's holiday. The outcome of the BOJ's meeting tomorrow remains a key source
of uncertainty. We suspect operation changes rather than substantive policy
adjustments, like abandoning the yield-curve control or widening the 10-year
band further, but, of course, recognize the pressure to act.
Asia Pacific
The BOJ finds itself in an unenviable position of its own making. If
it adjusts the Yield-Curve Control by widening band of the 10-year yield
again or abandoning it all together, its credibility is diminished. It has
spent more than $80 bln in the past three sessions defending it. It maintains
the cap, it likely faces continued challenge by the markets, which has pushed
the 10-year yield through the 0.50% cap, even if its tweaks the market
operations, which Japanese banks and brokers think is more likely. At the
end of week, Japan reports its December CPI figures. The headline and core
rates are seen rising to 4.0%. Consider that the uncertainty ahead of the
outcome of the BOJ meeting has driven overnight implied volatility above 50%,
to its highest level since the Great Financial Crisis.
China reported better than expected data. Rather than contract
in Q4 as many projected, the economy stagnated after growing 3.9% in Q3.
Industrial output grew 1.3% year-over-year in December, while economists had
projected a 0.1% increase. Retail sales were expected to have collapsed by 9.0%
year-over-year after falling 5.9% in November. Instead, they fell by 1.8%. Fixed
asset investment slowed a little from the 5.3% pace seen in November to 5.1%.
Property investment slipped further, falling 10.0% from 9.8%. However, this was
still slightly better than anticipated. Residential property sales decline was
virtually unchanged at -28.3% (from -28.4%). And stretching the imagination,
was a decline in survey unemployment to 5.5% from 5.7%.
After falling to about JPY127.25 yesterday, its lowest level since last
May, the dollar recovered to JPY129.15 today in early Asian turnover. An
adjustment in BOJ operations tomorrow, and no major shift in policy could see
the dollar challenge last week's high near JPY133. On the other hand, an
abandonment of Yield-Curve Control entire, would spur another leg lower for the
dollar. A break of the JPY126.50 area could target the JPY120.50-JPY121.00
area, even if not immediately. The Australian dollar rose above $0.7000
briefly yesterday for the first time since last August. It has pulled back
to $0.6930 today in the European morning. The next area of support is seen near
$0.6920. If it is pushed through it, there appears to be initial potential
toward $0.6880. The PBOC has begun injecting liquidity into the banking
system to prepare for the Lunar New Year holiday next week. The yuan
snapped a three day advance yesterday and retreated further today. The dollar
fell to almost CNY6.69 yesterday, its lowest level since last July and today,
recovered to around CNY6.7830. It is the biggest back-to-back gain for the
greenback since November. The PBOC set the dollar's reference rate at
CNY6.7222, slightly lower than the median projection in Bloomberg's survey for
CNY6.7243.
Europe
The German Dax lost nearly 12.4% last year. Through
yesterday, it is up 8.7% this year. Defying expectations for a Q4 contraction,
Europe's largest economy appears to have stagnated. Moreover, the risk of an
energy crisis appears to be abating as natural gas prices continue to fall. The
price of Europe's benchmark was more than halved in Q4 and are off another 25%
so far this year. Yesterday's decline brought the benchmark to its lowest level
since September 2021. In addition, the euro has recovered nearly 14% off the
late-September lows (~$0.9535). In dollar-terms, the price of Brent oil
is practically flat. There is little wonder then that the ZEW survey of
investor confidence has improved. The assessment of the current situation rose
for the third consecutive month (-58.6 vs. -61.4). At 16.9 (from -23.3 in November),
the expectations component is at its best level since last February and blew
away expectations for -15.0.
The UK's employment report strengthened the conviction that the Bank of
England will lift the base rate 50 bp at the February 2 meeting. The focus
is on weekly earnings, which accelerated to 6.4% with and without bonuses in
the three-months, year-over-year calculation through November. The ILO measure
of unemployment was unchanged at 3.7%. In December, the jobless claims rose by
almost 20k, while November's claims were revised to 16.1k from 30.5k.
Payrolls grew by 28k, less than half of what was projected, while the November
jobs creation was revised to 70k from 107k. This follows on the heels of last
week's unexpected new that the economy expanded in November (and October) after
contracting in September. Tomorrow, the UK will report December CPI figures and
a slight slowing is expected to keep the year-over-year pace above 10%.
The euro reached almost $1.0875 yesterday in Asia but stalled and slipped
back to about $1.08. It is trading with a slightly heavier bias today but
remains above yesterday's low. The pre-weekend low was near $1.0780 and a break
of could see a return to the $1.0720-30 area. Sterling approached $1.2290
yesterday, its best level since mid-December. It is little changed today,
in about a 30-pip range on either side of $1.2200. Within the consolidative
tone, it could slip toward $1.2150 initially, but we suspect potential exists
back toward $1.2100.
America
The holiday-shortened busy week for US economic data begins slowly. On
tap today is the first regional Fed's survey for January. The Empire State
survey has been alternating between improvement and weakening since the middle
of last year. And the pattern is expected to remain intact with today's reading.
The survey deteriorated to -11.2 in December from 4.5 in November. The median
forecast in Bloomberg's survey is for -8.6. Last week, the Atlanta Fed's GDPNow
for Q4 edged up to 4.1% from 3.8%. It will be revised tomorrow after the series
of December economic readings, and the risk is to the downside. Retail sales
and industrial production are expected to have extended declines since in
November. The as expected decline in December CPI has seen the odds a 50 bp
hike by the Fed on February 1 ease to around 10% from about 33% at the end of
last year. Meanwhile, the market continues to discount a rate cut in Q4. At the
end of 2022, the yield of the December Fed funds futures was 24.5 bp below the
September contract. The discount is now 29 bp.
Canada reports December CPI today ahead of next week's Bank of Canada
meeting. The headline rate is expected to moderate to 6.4% from 6.8%, with
the month-over-month rate falling by 0.5%. The monthly rate fell by 0.3% last
August and the 0.5% decline would be the most since April 2020. The underlying
core rates are projected to moderate slightly but prove stickier. The swaps
market has about a 70% chance of a quarter-point hike discounted for next week.
This is seen a likely the last hike in the cycle. Canada also report
December housing starts (likely slowed) and November portfolio flows (not
typically a market mover).
The Golden Cross, in technical circles, is the crossing of the 50-day and
200-day moving averages. At the end of last week, the dollar's 50-day
moving average crossed below the 200-day for the dollar-yen. For sterling, the
50-day moving average cross above the 200-day the day before. The moving
averages crossed lower for the Dollar Index last Tuesday. The dollar's moving
averages crossed lower against the Swiss franc a few days before Christmas and
the euro's moving averages crossed a few days after Christmas. Among the
dollar-bloc currencies, only the New Zealand dollar has experienced the cross-over,
which occurred last Monday.
The US dollar put in a low at the end of last week near CAD1.3320. It
traded inside the pre-weekend range yesterday in quiet turnover and is edging
higher today to almost CAD1.3440. Initial resistance is seen closer to
CAD1.3460. We suspect there is potential toward CAD1.3500, especially if US
equities pare last week's gains. The greenback has fallen almost 4% against
the Mexican peso to start the year. The downside momentum appears to
have stalled near MXN18.73. Near-term potential extends back into the
MXN18.90-MXN18.96 area. It is a quiet week for Mexican data. The highlight is
the November retail sales report on Friday.
Disclaimer
Reviewed by Marc Chandler
on
January 17, 2023
Rating:
