The Japanese Yen and the Swiss Franc outperformed as sentiment soured across financial markets in Asian trade, boosting standby anti-risk assets. Investors seemed to be spooked by the threat of military action on the Korean peninsula following fiery comments US President Donald Trump.
Commodity bloc currencies are typically sensitive to swings in market mood and proved to be so against, with the Australian Dollar leading the way lower having been stung by disappointing consumer confidence data. The New Zealand Dollar held up best as traders look ahead to the RBNZ rate decision.
Looking ahead, another quiet day on the economic data front looks likely to keep risk trends at the forefront. European shares have picked up on the negative lead coming out of Asia and S&P 500 futures are pointing decidedly lower, arguing for continued risk aversion when Wall Street comes online.
On balance, this points to continuation of overnight trends. However, just as yesterday’s absence of top-tier news flow opened the door for today’s headline-inspired volatility (as suspected), so too the lull today may pave the way for a swift reversal if cooler heads appear to be prevailing.
Asia Session
European Session
No data.
** All times listed in GMT. See the full DailyFX economic calendar here.
