European Summary and Highlights 1 August
The USD, JPY and CHF were strong through the European morning session ahead of the BoE MPC meeting.
European morning session
The USD, JPY and CHF were strong through the European morning session ahead of the BoE MPC meeting. EUR/USD fell 45 pips to 1.0780, and GBP/USD fell 90 pips to 1.2760. AUD and CAD were also slightly lower, but the CHF and JPY slightly outperformed the USD, with EUR/CHF losing 50 pips to 0.9450 and EUR/JPY a figure to 161.50.
News was quite thin on the ground, with just final manufacturing PMIs from Europe which saw a small upward revision in both the Eurozone and the UK. Swedish manufacturing PMI (first release) was lower on the month, and the SEK and NOK both held their own against the USD.
Asia session
As market participants continue to digest the BoJ decision, USD/JPY continue to face more downward pressure with the Fed hinting cut is near. U.S. Treasury are recovering partially while JGB yields retreat, seems to be behind the rebound from 148.51 session low. USD/JPY is currently trading 0.36% lower at 149.36.
The June Australian Trade Balance came in stronger than May at AUD 5589m but both export and import contracted, pointing towards softer outlook. Regional sentiment is weak, led by the fall in Nikkei of more than 2% while U.S. major equity indexes are seeing more upside after big gains on Wednesday. AUD/USD is trading 0.17% lower at 0.6530, NZD/USD fared better and slipped 2 pips to 0.5950 while USD/CAD is unchanged. Else, EUR/USD is unchanged and GBP/USD down 0.08%.