http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/http://mediaserver.fxstreet.com/images/fxstreet-provider-logo1-en.gif7http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/19/Ben Bernanke pretty much delivered what the market had been anticipating when he signalled a reduction in the Fed’s quantitative easing programs. The initial market reaction was to sell stocks, sell gold, buy the USD and sell risk-related currencies. The market will now focus on emerging markets in Asia and see how badly affected their equity and debt markets are by the announcement. Elsewhere the HSBC version of Chinese manufacturing PMI should also have an impact on market volatility and theWed, 19 Jun 2013 22:52:23 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/19/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/18/Big one-off flows continue to dominate the FX market and once again we saw the EUR and the AUD headed in different directions on the back of some significant flows. The market took a dovish approach to the RBA minutes, although personally I failed to see anything new or surprising in the June minutes. EZ data was quickly ignored and the market concentrated instead on pushing through some big flows. Tonight’s FOMC is the big risk event and I see more ‘risk-off’ danger after the event withTue, 18 Jun 2013 23:23:13 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/18/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/17/Yesterday’s ‘risk-on’ rally in the Yen crosses was sharply reversed overnight after an article in the FT suggested that Fed tapering of its QE program was very close. The overreaction to this story across all financial markets suggests that market positioning is at very uncomfortable levels and may even be reaching ‘bubble’ proportions across certain asset classes. I’d expect Asia to stay reasonably quiet ahead of tomorrow’s FOMC but the danger side would seem to be the downside for pairsMon, 17 Jun 2013 23:01:59 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/17/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/16/We have seen some massive turnover in all of the majors over the last two weeks and these flows finally seem to be drying up. The Yen crosses across the board have seen a big retracement, which is a healthy sign in any trend, and the AUD has been the big loser.  Not much of note on the economic calendar today and the main focus for AUD traders will be tomorrow’s RBA minutes. Yen traders will be watching the Nikkei for leads on the Tokyo open but overall I’m expecting a fairly quiet daySun, 16 Jun 2013 23:32:05 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/16/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/13/Wild volatility yesterday in AUD/JPY saw it fall initially by over 2% and then reclaim those losses and finish the day nearly 2% higher. The Nikkei fell by over 5% at one stage and that was the driver in the morning, sending FX risk-aversion trades tumbling, but lack of follow through and a generally oversold market then saw the exact same risk trades rebound sharply. Most of the big hedge fund positional liquidation is in other financial markets and the FX market looks to have once againThu, 13 Jun 2013 23:02:10 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/13/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/12/There wasn’t a huge amount of movement overall yesterday but the flows remain very large in certain pairs. The market-insider gossip is that one of the largest macro funds in the financial markets has started to liquidate positions very quickly across a range of asset classes (cash, debt, equity) and this is having a major impact on USD/JPY in particular. The positions built up in USD/JPY since the move started at 80.00 are quite huge and if they start to liquidate then we will be back belowWed, 12 Jun 2013 23:48:49 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/12/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/11/Did I say normal yesterday? Well maybe it’s the new normal with AUD/JPY falling by 4% at one stage during the day and general volatility remaining quite high. The focus remains on the crosses with the AUD and the JPY headed in opposing directions but flows across all pairs are at extreme levels. The previously strong correlation between US yields and USD/JPY seems to have completely broken down and this is making market predictions even trickier than usual. Chinese markets are closed today andTue, 11 Jun 2013 23:09:56 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/11/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/10/The markets finally returned to a semblance of normality yesterday, but not before the AUD took an early morning dive after Chinese trade data showed reduced activity. The rest of the day was characterised by short-covering in the Yen crosses but moves were relatively orderly for a change. Massive flows are to blame for all the recent moves but we do now seem to be reaching some sort of equilibrium point in the majors. The big EUR/AUD buy order isn’t quite complete yet, but the AUD-sellingMon, 10 Jun 2013 22:31:58 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/10/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/06/The big flows started yesterday during Asian trade with heavy AUD selling in what turned out to be a big EUR/AUD buy order mixed in with heavy liquidation of long AUD/JPY exposure from asset managers. Dealers say that volumes were quite massive at times and they expect to see more of the same over coming days. It’s NFP Friday today, which is always a volatile time, and we can expect plenty of movement in scared markets. Thankfully the Asian economic calendar looks quite bare so we don’t haveThu, 06 Jun 2013 23:41:26 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/06/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/05/Somewhat of a risk-off session overnight and it will be all eyes on the Nikkei today to see what happens there. The Yen crosses fell heavily and it seems that some long-term macro positions are starting to sell out. US ADP data came in below expectations at 135k and this influenced sentiment as its often a leading indicator for NFP data tomorrow. The Australian trade date is expected to come in below last month’s levels but the FX market will surely take its lead off the equity markets againWed, 05 Jun 2013 22:48:30 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/05/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/04/02/The market looks to have settled after Monday’s sharp moves and will now wait until Friday’s NFP before it decides on its next push. My feeling is that the underlying USD bullish bias remains intact and the market hasn’t given up yet on seeing higher levels but that might all change if the number comes in significantly different to the 150k expectations. The main event on Asian FX markets will be the Australian GDP data and with some big levels looming in the AUD crosses, we may get someTue, 04 Jun 2013 23:14:07 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/04/02/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/03/Disappointing PMI data from around the globe, and particularly in the US, have greatly diminished any hopes of Fed tapering out of its QE program. This in turn has dented the hopes of an extended USD rally and we saw some heavy profit taking overnight in pairs like AUD/USD, NZD/USD and USD/JPY.  Today’s big risk event is the RBA rate decision. They are generally expected to stay on hold although recent soft domestic data might convince them to make one final cut for the year. Mr StevensMon, 03 Jun 2013 22:38:14 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/03/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/02/Today should be a more normal trading day with the market watching developments in emerging markets as well as regional economic releases. China’s official manufacturing PMI came in better than expected over the weekend and this has led to an early rally in the AUD. Today sees the HSBC version of China PMI, as well as official non-manufacturing PMI and Australian retail sales. It should be a busy day. New Zealand markets are closed today. Demonstrations in Turkey and heavy falls in LATAMSun, 02 Jun 2013 22:47:42 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/06/02/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/30/Overall sentiment towards the USD is starting to weaken very quickly and with the market sitting long of the greenback, we might see this trend continue for a week or so. Overnight there was some weaker than expected US GDP data which didn’t help the USD bull cause but the main story is the big end-of-month flows which are expected to have a major impact later today. USD/JPY should be very busy today. There were reports overnight that the Japanese public pension fund would start investing inThu, 30 May 2013 23:11:53 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/30/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/29/Banks and prime brokers report some very large volumes overnight, predominantly from leveraged players, but the net effect has only been to reverse the USD gains from Tuesday. The major event later today will be the release of Q1 GDP for the US and that should have a big bearing on pairs like USD/JPY and USD/CHF, which have been bearing the brunt of speculator interest. There is not much of note on today’s economic calendar so we will once again be glued to the Nikkei for intraday leads.Wed, 29 May 2013 23:09:50 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/29/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/28/USD/JPY made a strong move higher yesterday during Asian trade after the Nikkei started to rebound from recent sell-offs. This positive USD sentiment carried on into the US session when stronger than expected consumer sentiment data caused the USD/CHF to spike higher. It’s a bit early for USD bulls to be calling the bull-trend back in control and overall consolidation and range trading is likely to dominate for a few sessions yet. Japanese retail trade and Australian construction data are theTue, 28 May 2013 22:56:27 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/28/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/27/There was very little to report in overnight trade with holidays in the UK and the US ensuring that many big market players took a long weekend break. Today might be equally quiet in Asia, with nothing of note on the economic calendar, and we will rely on movements in the Nikkei or JGBs to provide us with some leads. USD/JPY is still hanging around 101.00 but the short-term technicals do show scope for further falls to test important technical levels near 99.60. Dealers report plentiful bidsMon, 27 May 2013 22:56:22 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/27/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/26/Overseas markets haven’t been following the Nikkei lead and the big risk-averse plays that Asia witnessed on Thursday and Friday haven’t really played out elsewhere. Nevertheless, the Yen is still in retracement mode and USD/JPY looks likely to test 100.00 in coming sessions and the AUD has been the big loser with asset managers from around the globe forced to fully hedge their currency exposure. UK and US markets are closed later today so that should ensure a fairly quiet day on the FXSun, 26 May 2013 22:58:49 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/26/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/23/There was a massive 8% intraday reversal yesterday in the Nikkei and this led to a huge clean-out in risk trades like AUD/JPY in particular. The question which will be answered today in the Tokyo stock-market is whether the Nikkei selling was purely technical or whether a reversal is underway. I’d expect the FX market to get most of its leads from the Nikkei. Today’s risk events include the New Zealand trade data and a speech by the BOJ Governor Kuroda. AUD/JPY tumbled dramatically after itThu, 23 May 2013 23:08:24 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/23/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/22/I don’t think the market really even cares what Mr Bernanke had to say, it’s bullish USD and intends to stay that way. There were some big moves in some of the more exotic crosses with massive flows seen from one big global macro fund in particular and it seems that players are starting to increase their bets.  Today’s main event is the HSBC version of Chinese manufacturing PMI which may add a bit of volatility to the AUD, not that it needs it! Australian inflation expectation data isWed, 22 May 2013 23:22:06 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/22/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/21/There were some big moves in the crosses overnight with the GBP falling after disappointing economic data, USD/CAD trying to break above a weekly trend-line resistance level and heavy selling of the CHF by some large hedge funds. The USD fell back in late NY trade after comments from Fed members Bullard and Dudley suggested that there will be little or no mention of ‘tapering’ in tonight’s Congress testimony from My Bernanke. Today’s main risk event in Asia will be the BOJ policy decision butTue, 21 May 2013 22:34:01 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/21/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/20/02/Today’s main risk event will be the release of the RBA minutes from last meeting and of course the big event on Wednesday in the US will be Mr Bernanke’s appearance before Congress when the markets will be hanging on every mention of the word ‘tapering’. There were no major movements overnight although the USD has drifted slightly lower on profit taking ahead of the Fed chairman’s testimony. USD/JPY is widely expected to trade between 100/104 for a few weeks whilst big option plays are inMon, 20 May 2013 23:30:13 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/20/02/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/19/USD/JPY traded 100 pips lower from the Friday close during early interbank trade after the Japanese EconMin said over the weekend that the Yen correction had gone far enough. The USD index broke above an important technical resistance level at 84.10 on Friday and bullish dollar momentum seems to be picking up some steam. There are no data releases of note on today’s calendar and most of the movement in Asia should be in the Yen and the AUD. The next big event which the market is awaiting is aSun, 19 May 2013 22:37:32 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/19/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/17/I’m still very much convinced that we are not currently witnessing a pure USD-bullish market, but that the EUR and the GBP will also have periods of strength whilst the long-term safe-haven plays into currencies like the CHF, AUD and NZD are systematically unwound.  Overnight we saw some very heavy AUD selling in particular which only ran out of steam when Sovereign buyers entered the market. Gold and Silver fell heavily at times and they again seem to be leading the FX market, ratherFri, 17 May 2013 00:31:26 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/17/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/15/The EUR lost some ground on the crosses after some more disappointing EZ economic data and the USD has as yet been unable to break through some important levels against other major currencies, perhaps a sign of a consolidation period ahead? There is not much of note on today’s economic calendar with Japanese GDP, which is usually ignored, and also Chinese FDI. European and US CPI later tonight will be of much more interest to the market.  EUR/USD bears are trying to regain control and theWed, 15 May 2013 22:37:40 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/15/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/14/Present moves in the FX market have everything to do with the long-term build-up of safe-haven trades which we have witnessed over many years particularly in the CHF and the AUD. We saw what happened to the Yen once the market tried to exit a position of being structurally long Japanese assets and I believe we are witnessing the same situation in the CHF in particular.  There are no major data releases due today so I would expect a fairly quiet day of consolidation, although as it’s theTue, 14 May 2013 23:09:23 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/14/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/13/Not a lot to report from overnight trade with the USD consolidating after better-than-expected retail sales data and the GBP losing most on the crosses on some heavy technical selling. Tonight’s Australian budget will be the main event for AUD traders whilst elsewhere there is NZ retail sales and Japanese CGPI on the economic calendar. On the flow front we can hope for some increased activity at the Tokyo fix but otherwise it looks pretty quiet according to interbank dealers. My bias on theMon, 13 May 2013 22:12:40 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/13/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/12/There has been a very quiet start to early interbank trade, a sure sign that there aren’t many stops close to the market. Hedge funds were big buyers of the USD towards the end of last week and once these big players all start trading in one direction, the trend can last for quite some time. Fed watcher Hilsenrath was less specific about Fed tapering than many had expected and this might lead to some short-term profit taking by USD bulls. The economic calendar has only some minor AustralianSun, 12 May 2013 22:27:47 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/12/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/09/Pardon all the clichés but it was a return to the good (or bad) old days with stop-loss hunts and rumours about the Fed driving the USD through the roof. USD/JPY was the main driver but no pair was spared as every short USD position on the books got targeted.  The main focus today will be on the Yen crosses but with G7 FinMins set to meet and with the RBA monetary policy statement to be released, we should see plenty of movement. USD/JPY started to move higher in early NY trade on prettyThu, 09 May 2013 23:15:25 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/09/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/08/The price action in the EUR crosses has been very bullish over the last few days, starting with EUR/JPY last Friday after the NFP and now being followed by others crosses like EUR/NZD. The comments from the RBNZ’s Wheeler sent the NZD tumbling yesterday and better-than-expected German economic data gave the EUR a lift; all of this amounted to a very sharp rally in EUR/NZD taking it back towards important resistance near 1.5700. Today we have Australian jobs data and Chinese CPI numbers. I’mWed, 08 May 2013 22:56:32 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/08/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/07/Not much to report in overnight trade with the majors hanging around familiar levels and the focus again in Asia should be on the Anzac currencies. Yesterday’s RBA decision obviously begets the obvious question as to when will they cut again and today’s Chinese trade data may give us more of a clue. This morning’s RBNZ report has put more pressure on the NZD, which is now lower against the AUD than it was before yesterday’s rate cut; looks like the market might be very short of this particularTue, 07 May 2013 23:34:44 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/07/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/06/Not a lot to report on overnight trade with most of the majors still hanging around close to yesterday’s levels. Most volatility was seen in the EUR crosses as they chopped around on positional flows. All eyes today will be on the RBA and whilst almost all economists expect them to stay on hold, I’m tending the other way. The recent weakness in metal markets and the comments from the ECB should show Mr Stevens that he is well behind the curve and has some catching up to do. Australian tradeMon, 06 May 2013 22:56:16 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/06/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/05/The Yen crosses turned bullish again with a vengeance after better-than-expected NFP data improved market sentiment across the board. The price action in EUR/JPY in particular was very bullish in my opinion, and we may well have seen a return to the bull trend after a lengthy period of consolidation. Japanese markets are closed again but we should nevertheless have a reasonably busy session especially in the AUD. Unofficial inflation data and retail sales figures may yet have some influence onSun, 05 May 2013 22:47:22 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/05/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/02/The market reacted in quite a surprising fashion to comments from Mario Draghi that the ECB is ‘technically ready’ to lower deposit rates. He has said this before so it shouldn’t have come as too much of a surprise but obviously the short-term EUR market was caught long. EUR/USD fell very sharply from 1.3200 to 1.3040 but reports from some of the major banks put all of the selling down to leveraged accounts, which would support the theory that last night’s sell-off was just a clean out ofThu, 02 May 2013 22:30:24 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/02/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/01/It should be a much busier day today in the Asian FX market with China returning after a 3 day holiday and a spate of important events on the economic calendar. The latest BOJ minutes probably won’t include any surprises but with positioning in the Yen still at significant levels, it won’t take much to swing the market into action. The HSBC version of China’s PMI may also add to market volatility and of course we have the ECB and BOE meetings later today. There were some heavy selling flows inWed, 01 May 2013 22:57:29 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/05/01/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/30/The EUR was the main mover overnight and whilst analysts will pore over minor data releases looking for reasons, the basic driver was stop-loss hunting ahead of a Labour Day holiday and the ECB meeting the following day. China is closed today and Japan is in holiday mode ahead of a 4-day weekend. There are some minor Australian data releases which shouldn’t cause much volatility. EUR/USD tried the topside first in early Europe, ran into BIS selling near 1.3120, so it quickly reversed and foundTue, 30 Apr 2013 22:19:20 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/30/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/29/The Asian market is being particularly quiet this week with China and Japan having a series of public holidays. With the ECB and BOE set to meet on Thursday, traders are sitting on their hands and the only movement is coming from positional adjustments and stop-loss runs. The ECB is expected to cut its refi rate by 25 bps, either at this meeting or to signify that it will happen in June.  USD/JPY is still in a very solid up-trend but momentum has begun to wane and bulls will undoubtedlyMon, 29 Apr 2013 23:01:02 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/29/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/28/The majors are opening pretty close to Friday’s closing levels after a relatively quiet weekend. A new government was announced in Italy (not an uncommon event!) and Chinese corporate profit data was relatively disappointing. There is another Japanese holiday today which should ensure quiet trading. Positional adjustment is the main factor at play in the FX market, with JPY and GBP shorts being reduced and AUD and CHF longs being trimmed. USD/JPY is still the likeliest source of volatility andSun, 28 Apr 2013 22:35:58 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/28/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/25/EUR/GBP was the main mover overnight amid diverging central bank expectations. The better-than-expected UK GDP data has lowered expectations of any further QE whilst the market is again focussing on a possible 25 bps rate cut by the ECB next week. Today’s BOJ meeting is not expected to produce any major surprises but care is warranted nonetheless around the time of the statement. US GDP data later tonight will also add to volatility. EUR/GBP has fallen back below its 100-day MA but is stillThu, 25 Apr 2013 22:58:57 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/25/http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/24/Obviously I’m talking my book (as most trades do!) but the weakening in the CHF is way overdue. The big sell-off in the yen and the stop-loss stampede in Gold indicate to me that the safe-haven trades of the last 5 years are under serious threat and the biggest of these trades in a structural sense is likely to be the markets long positioning in CHF assets. That said, the market doesn’t generate momentum from a standing start and resistance at .9570 and 1.2390 in USD/CHF and EUR/CHFWed, 24 Apr 2013 22:45:05 GMThttp://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/sean@fxww.com (FXWW)http://www.fxstreet.com/technical/analysis-reports/asia-market-open/2013/04/24/