Short the yen

Peter A Rosenstreich Swissquote Bank Ltd

USD/JPY and EUR/JPY should be reloaded now This week’s Bank of Japan policy decision will be to hold rates. USD/JPY continued to strengthen ahead of critical US Federal Reserve and BoJ meetings. The BoJ has made it clear: no change should be expected. In addition, the trade dispute with the US has caused some distortion in the market pricing of the Euro. Monetary policy divergence remains the primary drive in USD/JPY positioning.

Inflation is far off target, and the BoJ has said that changes would materialize only when inflation reaches the bank’s target. Growth has also disappointed, led by weakening private demand, indicating a target-hit is also unlikely next year. Investment and consumptions could easily correct lower should, weighing on wages and prices, should the market feel that the stimulus is now causing stocks to fall. Therefore, further easing could be on the table to prop-up asset prices and confidence. Finally, the political threat to Prime Minister Abe and ‘Abenomics’ has faded. With a firm grip on power, Abenomics could fire up again.

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Author

Peter A Rosenstreich

Swissquote Bank Ltd

Peter Rosenstreich is Swissquote Bank’s Head of Market Strategy and manages the global strategy desk; he has held various positions in several banking institutions in the United States, Europe & Asia.

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