FX Market Stays Quiet, Equities Recover

 | Sep 30, 2015 05:05AM ET

h3 Market Brief

Most Asian regional markets got some colour back on Wednesday, despite the disappointing economic data from Japan. The country’s industrial production fell unexpectedly in August, raising concerns about Japan’s slowdown and building the case for additional monetary stimulus. Preliminary estimates showed that Industrial production contracted -0.5% m/m in August, lower than the market expected increase of 1%, but still above the -0.8% contraction in the previous month. On a year-over-year basis, the output of industrial establishments grew 0.2% y/y, lower than market estimates of 1.8%, but above the flat figure from July.

Retail sales added to the disappointment, confirming that Japan’s economy is faltering. The data came in on the soft side, printing at 0.8% y/y in August, weaker than the market expected increase of 1.2% expected and revised increase of 1.8% in July. The Nikkei and the TOPIX are up 2.46% and 2.59% respectively as the recent data are making investors reassess the prospects of an increase in BoJ’s monetary stimulus.

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng climbed 1.62% while mainland China’s major stock index, the Shanghai Composite, climbed 0.72%. South Korea KOSPI added 1.03% and India’s Sensex +0.78%. The yen’s response to the data was muted as USD/JPY continued to move sideways between 119.06 and 121.33.