Europe Summary and Highlights 23 October
AUD/USD gained 20 pips to 0.6510, USD/JPY rose 20 pips to 152.60, EUR/NOK fell 4 figures to 111.58 and EUR/GBP lost 10 pips to 0.8685 in the European morning.
European morning session
AUD/USD gained 20 pips to 0.6510, USD/JPY rose 20 pips to 152.60, EUR/NOK fell 4 figures to 111.58 and EUR/GBP lost 10 pips to 0.8685 in the European morning. EUR/USD was little changed. The FX moves indicated a generally risk positive tone rather than any particular news, but were also helped by the oil price extending overnight gains on the US sanctions on Russia.
The French INSEE survey showed a strong rise in the manufacturing outlook but little change in the general business outlook, and had a small but temporary positive impact on the EUR. Minutes from the SNB September meeting provided no great surprises, but highlighted the negative impact of US tariffs on the Swiss economy, while noting the upside risk to the Swiss franc from geopolitical factors.
Asia session
The USD/JPY continues to climb on Thursday. With Takaichi elected as PM and formed her own cabinet, there does not seem to be much support for the JPY. Market participants are diverged on their timing of BoJ hike but generally see a hike by December or January 2026. We will have to wait and see the details of Takaichi's policy before assessing their impact. USD/JPY is trading 0.29% higher at 152.40.
The U.S. has announced new sanctions on two largest Russian oil producers and it encourages oil bid in the Asia session. In the broader risk space, regional equities are in the red led by losses in Japan while U.S. major equity indexes hold on to their precise gains. AUD/USD is trading 0.02% lower at 0.6488, NZD/USD is down 0.08% at0.5734 while USD/CAD is unchanged. Else, EUR/USD is down 0.07% and GBP/USD is down 0.05%.