JPY Volatility Not Seen Since 2008

 | Jul 29, 2016 05:50AM ET

h3 London Forex Report

BOJ disappointed market expectation this morning and perhaps market expectations had been raised overnight on the back of the Reuters story that the MOF had prepared a press statement to coincide with BOJ easing. some of this USD/JPY decline has been cushioned by the news of an expansion in ETF purchases, doubling in the size of its USD lending program to USD 24bn and setup of a new facility to lend JGBs. But not what the market was looking for with the QQE program and monetary base unchanged at Yen 80 tln and the policy rate holding steady at -0.10% Indications are that opposition is growing within the BOJ to a costly and ineffective policy. US manufacturing and jobless claims took a turn for the worse while that of the EU and UK surprised on the upside. Contrary to improvement seen in manufacturing activities recently, Kansas City Fed manufacturing index slipped back into negative territory again while initial jobless claims climbed more than expected by 14K to 266K, but both had had little dent on Fed rate outlook.

FX Majors: EUR: slew of confidence indicators staged surprised upticks in July, signaling immediate impact from Brexit may be more contained although longer run downside risks remain valid. Economic confidence index was up 0.2 point to 104.6 this month while business climate indicator edged 0.17 point higher to 0.39. GBP: UK’s average house prices climbed 5.2% YOY to £ 205.7k in July (June: +5.1% YOY) according to Nationwide Building society but momentum in Britain’s property market may slow after Brexit. Despite low mortgage rates and housing supply shortages, a turn in homebuyers' sentiment weighed down by Brexit could soften demand for homes in the near term. JPY: Spending among Japanese households fell for four straight months, strengthening the case for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe recently announced expansion of fiscal spending to spur growth. Household spending tumbled 2.2% YOY in June (May: -1.1% YOY) while retail sales rose less than expected last month (+0.2% MOM vs consensus: +0.3% MOM). Consumer prices also dropped for four consecutive months before BOJ’s monetary policy disappointment.

EUR/USD
Outlook: Short Term (1-3 Days): Neutral – Medium Term (1-3 Weeks): Bearish

Technical: Breach of 1.1060 reestablishes range trade and refocuses attention on 1.1185 range resistance as the major near term upside hurdle a close above this level opens 1.14 next.
Retail Sentiment: Bearish
Trading Take-away: Long