Asia Summary and Highlights 22 Oct
The September Japan trade balance missed estimate on stronger import
Asia Session
The September Japan trade balance has missed estimate on stronger import. Widely expected a surplus, we are seeing a deficit of 234.6b JPY as import grows stronger by 3.3%. Export towards the U.S. continue to contract on tariff impact while Asia demand remain strong. Despite a headline miss, higher import likely means the domestic demand of Japan stays solid and could point towards steady recovery in consumption amid higher prices. USD/JPY is trading 0.07% lower at 151.82. The pair retraces partial early losses on finance minister Katayama's remark cannot say that Japan has exited deflation fully.
The broad sentiment seems to be a bit sour with regional equities still in the red after clawing back some gains. The major movement in the Asia session lies in metals again with Gold having a volatile 100+ dollar up and down session. AUD/USD is trading 0.15% higher at 0.6497, NZD/USD is trading 0.09% hihger at 0.5746 while USD/CAD slips 0.09%. Else, EUR/USD is up 0.05% and GBP/USD down 0.7%.
North American session
The only significant move was a dip in USD/CAD to 1.4015 from 1.4040 as a stronger than expected rise in September Canadian CPI to 2.4% yr/yr from 1.9% created some doubts over a potential Bank of Canada easing on October 29. The move was initially reversed before a fresh dip that got close to 1.40 before finding a base. Most other pairs were little changed, USD/JPY near 151.90, EUR/USD near 1.16 and AUD/USD near .6490.