ForexLive Asia-Pacific FX news wrap: BOJ Gov Ueda spoke; sent USD/JPY up, then down | Forexlive

• Morgan Stanley Wilson bearish: “equities priced optimistic and lower probability outcome”
• More from BOJ Gov Ueda: Inflation expectations have risen and remain at elevated levels
• BOJ Gov Ueda says if price target is met in sustainable, stable manner, BoJ will end YCC
• Australian Q1 retail sales -0.6% q/q (vs. expected -0.6%)
• PBOC sets USD/ CNY central rate at 6.9255 (vs. estimate at 6.9251)
• JPMorgan’s Kolanovic still expects US equities to weaken for the remainder of the year
• Here’s a MUCH better RBA Review. Oh, language warning.
• PBOC is expected to set the USD/CNY reference rate at 6.9251 – Reuters estimate
• USD/JPY climbing – BOJ Gov Ueda speaking
• Australian weekly consumer confidence survey fell again, to 77.7 (prior 79.8)
• Japan March data – inflation adjusted real wages -2.9% y/y, household spending -1.9% y/y
• Australian household spending in April -4.3% m/m (prior +8.0% ) – CBA data
• UK data: Like-for-like retail sales +5.2% y/y (prior +4.9%).
• California regulator to heighten scrutiny of banks with US$50 billion or more in assets
• Bill Gross says buy short-term UST bills, debt fear “ridiculous. It is always resolved.”
• Yellen spoke earlier – said no good options if debt ceiling not raised – recap
• G7 to draw up plans for a more robust response to bank runs (like Silicon Valley Bank)
• Australian federal govmt budget Tuesday – expected to show the first surplus in 15 years
• “EUR/USD looks range bound around 1.10 in the very-near term. We have a bearish stance”
• FX option expiries for Tuesday, 9 May 2023 at the 10am New York cut
• Forexlive Americas FX news wrap 8 May:Quiet Monday trading in forex.Stocks mixed.Yields up
• More from Yellen: Don’t think recession is the most likely path, but can’t rule one out
• Yellen says again Treasury will run out of cash by June 1
• US stock indices close mixed. Dow industrial average lower. NASDAQ higher
• Federal Reserve says recent turmoil in banking industry has stabilized, could still impact
• Trade ideas thread – Tuesday, 9 May 2023

Bank
of Japan Governor Ueda appeared in the Japanese parliament today. His
initial comments weakened the yen despite them being not of much
substance nor surprise. USD/JPY rose to highs circa 135.30. In the
hour or so that followed USD/JPY drifted down a little. Ueda then
mentioned that if inflation was sustained and stable the BoJ could
drop YCC and trim its balance sheet. He also spoke of ‘heightened
inflation expectations’. USD/JPY dropped back to just under 135.00.
Not a big range.

There
wasn’t a lot else to move major FX rates. Yellen gave an interview
on CNBC, speaking mainly on the debt ceiling. There was wages and
household spending data from Japan, both lacklustre. Australian
retail sales data (Q1 and March month) were the same, RBA rate hikes
are increasingly impacting, shop price inflation is slowing.

More
on all of these in the bullet points above.

Asian
equity markets:

• Japan’s
  Nikkei 225 -0.8%

• China’s
  Shanghai Composite +0.15%

• Hong
  Kong’s Hang Seng -0.3%

• South
  Korea’s KOSPI -0.4%

• Australia’s
  S&P/ASX 200 -0.3%