Tag Archives: #BOJ

Past Its Shelf Life

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The narrative most of this year
Described central banks full of fear
So rates they would cut
Which might help somewhat
But so far that hasn’t been clear

Instead every meeting’s been rife
With conflict, dissension and strife
For NIRP, the doves pine
While hawks like to whine
That policy’s past its shelf life

At the end of a week filled with numerous central bank meetings, it’s time to consider what we’ve learned. Arguably, the first thing is that groupthink in the central banking community is not quite as widespread as we previously believed. This was made evident by the three dissenting votes at the FOMC on Wednesday as well as last week’s ECB meeting, where at least five members of the council argued vociferously for no further stimulus. The funny thing is that while I understand the European monetary hawks’ zeitgeist, (German hyperinflation of the 1920’s) the fact remains that Europe is slipping into recession and arguably the ECB is correct in trying to address that. With that said, I would argue they would have been far better off extending the TLTRO’s to an even longer maturity and cut rates there, allowing banks to earn from the ECB while they lend to clients at a positive rate. Simply cutting the deposit rate to -0.50% is very unlikely to spur growth further, at least based on the fact that it has not helped yet.

At the same time, the FOMC also has a wide range of opinions on display. Not only were there two hawkish dissents, there was a dovish one as well. And based on the dot plot, after this cut, there are now ten of the seventeen members who see no further rate action in 2019. Meanwhile, the market is still pricing in a 69% probability of a cut by the December meeting. There was a comment by a famous hedge fund trader that Chairman Powell is the weakest chairman in decades, based on these dissents, but it was just three years ago, in the September 2016 meeting when Janet Yellen chaired the Fed, that there were also three dissents at a meeting, with all three seeking a rate hike, while the Fed stood pat. The point is, it is probably a bit unfair to be claiming Powell is weak because some members have different views. And in the big picture, shouldn’t we want a diversity of ideas at the Fed? I think that would make for a healthier debate.

Two other meetings stand out, the BOJ and the PBOC, or at least actions by those banks stand out. While the BOJ left policy on hold officially, they not only promised a re-evaluation of the current monetary policy framework, but last night, they significantly reduced the amount of JGB’s that they purchased in the longer maturities. The absent ¥50 billion surprised market players and helped drive the yields on the back end higher by between 3-4bps. The BOJ have made it clear that they are interested in a steeper yield curve, and that’s just what they got. Their problem is that despite decades of ZIRP and then NIRP, as well as a massive QE program, their inflation target remains as far away as ever. Last night, for example, CPI was released at 0.5% Y/Y ex fresh food, the lowest level since mid-2017. It seems pretty clear that their actions have been a failure for decades and show no sign of changing. Perhaps they could use a little dissent!

Finally, the PBOC cut its 1-year Loan Prime Rate (its new monetary benchmark) by 5bps last night, the second consecutive cut and an indication that they are trying to add stimulus without inflating any financial bubbles. While this move was widely anticipated, they did not change the level of the 5-year Rate, which was also anticipated. The overall difference here, though, is that the PBOC is clearly far less concerned with what happens to investors than most Western central banks. After all, they explicitly take their marching orders from President Xi, so the overall scope of policy is out of their hands.

When looking at the impact of these moves, though, at least in the currency markets, the thrust was against the grain of what was desired by the central banks. If you recall last week, the euro initially declined, but then rallied sharply by the end of the day after the ECB meeting and has largely maintained those gains. Then yesterday we saw JPY strength, with no reprieve overnight after their change of stance, while the renminbi has actually strengthened 0.2% overnight in the wake of the rate cut. As I have been writing, central banks are slowly losing their grip on the markets, a situation which I believe to be healthy, but also one that will see increased volatility over time.

Looking at the market activity overnight, the screen shows that one of the best performers was INR, with the rupee gaining 0.5%. This comes on the back of the government’s announced $20 billion stimulus plan of corporate tax cuts. While equity markets there responded joyfully, Sensex +5.3%, government bonds fell sharply, with 10-year yields rising 15bps as bond investors questioned the ability of the government to run larger deficits. But away from that, the FX market was quite dull. EMG currencies saw both gainers and losers, with INR the biggest mover. G10 currencies were pretty much the same story with NZD the biggest mover, falling 0.4% after S&P explained that New Zealand banks still had funding problems.

The other two big stories have had mixed impact, with positive trade vibes being felt as low-level talks between the US and China have been ongoing this week, while the UK Supreme Court is now done with its hearings and we all simply await the decision. At the same time, EC President Juncker sounded positive that a Brexit deal could be done although Ireland continues to claim that nothing is close. The pound rallied on Juncker’s comments, but fell back below 1.25 after Ireland weighed in. Ask yourself if you think the rest of the EU will tolerate a solo Irish dissent on getting to a deal. It ain’t gonna happen.

As to today’s session, there is no data to be released but we will hear from three Fed speakers, Williams first thing, then Rosengren and Kaplan. It will be interesting to see how they try to spin things as to the Fed’s future activities. With that in mind, the biggest surprise seems like it can come from the UK , if we hear from the Supreme Court later today. While there is no clarity when they will rule, it is not out of the question. As to the dollar, it has no overall momentum and I see no reason for it to develop any without a catalyst.

Good luck and good weekend
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Not the Nadir

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The Chairman explained to us all
Preventing the ‘conomy’s stall
Required a cut
Of twenty-five but
Don’t look for, rates, further to fall

However, it’s not the nadir
For all rates, that’s certainly clear
Brazil cut a half
While BOJ staff
Will check if they’re now too austere

As I mentioned on Monday, the Fed was merely the first in a long list of major central banks meeting this week. By now we all know the FOMC cut rates by 25 bps and released a statement that was certainly more hawkish than many had hoped for expected. The vote was largely as expected, with the July dissenters, George and Rosengren, continuing to vote for no change, while this month, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard also dissented, voting for a 50bp cut. Of more interest was the dot plot, which showed five members forecasting no further cuts this year, five looking for one more cut and seven looking for two cuts. That is actually quite a bit more hawkish than expected going into the meeting. In the end, equity markets sold off initially, but rallied late in the day to close essentially unchanged. Treasuries rallied all day leading up to the meeting, but ceded those gains in the wake of the announcement and press conference while the dollar rallied against most currencies, although it has given back those gains overnight.

Powell’s explanation for cutting was that the committee was still concerned over issues like global growth, trade policy and Brexit, and so felt a cut was merited to help insure steady growth. My impression is Powell is not anxious to cut again, but arguably it will depend on how the data evolves between now and the October meeting.

Meanwhile, late yesterday afternoon the Central Bank do Brazil cut their SELIC rate by 50bps to 5.50%, a new record low for the rate, but also a widely expected move by the market. Inflation in Brazil continues to slow, and with growth extremely sluggish, President Roberto Campos Neto made clear that they expect inflation to remain quiescent and will do what they can to help bolster the economy there. Look for another 50bps this year and potentially more next year as well. It should be no surprise that the real weakened yesterday, falling 0.8%, and I expect it has further to fall as Neto was clear that a weaker currency would not deter him.

Then overnight we heard from a number of central banks with Bank Indonesia cutting the expected 25bps top 5.25%, while the HKMA also cut in order to keep step with the US. Both currencies, IDR and HKD, were virtually unchanged overnight as the market had fully priced in the moves. Arguably of more importance was the BOJ meeting, where they left policy unchanged, but where Kuroda-san explained that the BOJ would undertake a full review of policy by the October meeting to insure they were doing everything they could to support the economy. There were a number of analysts who were expecting a rate cut, or at least further QE, and so the disappointment led to a 0.5% rally in the yen.

When Europe walked in, there were three central bank meetings scheduled with the Swiss maintaining policy rates but adjusting the amount of reserves exempt from the deposit rate of -0.75%. While Swiss banks have been complaining about this, given there was already a tiered system it was not anticipated that things would change. The upshot is that the franc is firmer by 0.6% in the wake of the announcement, although traders are a bit on edge given the SNB was clear that intervention remained on the table.

The biggest surprise came from Norway, which hiked rates 25 bps to 1.50%. While several of the Norwegian banks were calling for the hike, the market at large did not believe the Norgesbank would raise rates while the rest of the world was cutting. But there you go, the situation there is that the economy is doing fine, inflation is perking up and because of the government’s ability to tap the oil investment fund, they are actually utilizing fiscal policy as well as monetary policy in their economic management. With all that in mind, however, they were pretty clear this is the last hike for the foreseeable future. NOK rallied 0.5% on the news, but it has given all those gains back and now sits unchanged on the day.

Finally, in what is no surprise at all, the BOE just announced that policy remains unchanged for the time being as all eyes turn toward Brexit and what will happen there. The UK also released Retail Sales data which was bang on expectations and so the pound remains beholden entirely to the Brexit situation.

Speaking of Brexit, today is the third day of hearings at the UK Supreme Court regarding the two lawsuits against the Johnson government’s decision to prorogue parliament for five weeks. If you recall, late Tuesday when word got out that the justices seemed to be very hard on the government, the pound rallied. Interestingly, this morning there are stories all over the press about how the likelihood of a no-deal Brexit seems to be growing quickly. Everybody is tired of the process and thus far, neither side has blinked. I maintain the EU will blink as the economic damage to Germany, the Netherlands and Ireland adding to the entire EU’s economic malaise will be too much to tolerate. But we shall see. As I have been typing, the pound has been edging lower and is now down 0.2% on the day, but in the big picture, that is the same as unchanged.

Turning to this morning’s US data, we start with Philly Fed (exp 10.5) and Initial Claims (213K) and then at 10:00 see Existing Home Sales (5.38M). Yesterday’s housing data, starts and permits, were much better than expected, which given the sharp decline in mortgage rates and still robust employment situation, should not be that surprising. As to Fed speakers, there is no one on tap for today, but three (Williams, Rosengren and Kaplan) due to speak tomorrow. Equity futures are pointing slightly lower right now and if I had to guess, the dollar is more likely to rally slightly than not as the day progresses although large moves are not on the cards.

Good luck
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QT Anyone? (or The Three Hawksketeers)

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As summer recedes
JGB rates have collapsed
QT anyone?

As we approach the unofficial end of summer with the Labor Day holiday weekend, it seems the BOJ is finally responding to the fact that their yield curve control policy has been dismissed by the market for basically all of August. A brief history shows that ordinary QE had lost its ability to impact the Japanese economy by September 2016, by which time the BOJ owned about 40% of JGB’s outstanding and thus destroyed any sense of it being a true market. At that point, they introduced yield curve control in an attempt to insure that 10-year yields didn’t rise prematurely. Initially they set a range of +/-0.10% around zero, where if the 10-year traded outside the range they would step in and push it back. Last year they widened that range to +/-0.20%, and up until the beginning of this month, things were working smoothly.

Then the global bond rally gathered steam and JGB’s were not exempt with 10-year yields falling to -0.30% at one point earlier this week, well below the lower bound. Remarkably, the BOJ did nothing, calling into question their commitment to yield curve control. As it turns out, last night they finally acted, reducing the quantity of bonds to be purchased monthly going forward by a significant ¥50 trillion. JGB yields did rally 3bps initially, but closed the session only 1bp higher and still well below the lower bound. As I have been writing, this is simply further proof that the central banks have run out of effective monetary policy tools. As to the impact on the yen, overnight has seen a very modest strengthening of just 0.15%. For the month, however, the increase in risk aversion has seen the yen outperform every other currency in the world, rallying 2.1% against the dollar, and more against most others. While I continue to view the dollar in a positive light going forward, I also continue to see further gains for the yen against all comers.

The hawks at the ECB fear
That not only rate cuts are near
So this week they’ve shrieked
Though rates might be tweaked
That QE has no place this year

Meanwhile, from Europe we had the third of the Three Hawksketeers in the ECB on the tape overnight, Klaas Knot the President of the Dutch central bank. In line with his German colleagues Sabine Lautenschlager and Jens Weidmann, he said that while a cut in interest rates could make sense here, there is absolutely no cause for the reinitiation of QE at this time. That is to be used in dire emergencies (perhaps like a hard Brexit?). This sets up quite a battle for Signor Draghi at his penultimate meeting next month, where other ECB members, Finland’s Ollie Rehn notably, have already called for ‘impactful’ actions implying he wants to over deliver on market expectations.

The market response to the Knot comments was muted at best with Bunds and Dutch bonds seeing yields actually fall 0.5bps in today’s trade. However, that could also be a response to this morning’s Eurozone CPI data where the headline printed at 1.0%, as expected but still miles from their target of “just below 2.0%”. Of more concern though was the core number which surprisingly fell to 0.9%, adding to the case for further stimulus, at least in the ECB’s collective modeling minds. And the euro? Well it has continued its slow and steady decline this month, falling another 0.2% and now trading at its lowest level since May 2017. It continues to be very difficult to make a case for the euro to rebound significantly anytime soon. And despite the Three Hawksketeers, I am more and more convinced that QE starts up again next month. Look for further declines in the single currency.

On the trade front, everybody seems willing to take the over on a positive outcome which has supported stocks nicely. On Brexit, there have been three lawsuits filed against PM Johnson’s move to prorogue Parliament for five weeks, but the first ruling that came down this morning went in Boris’s favor. The pound is little changed on the day, even after marginally weaker than expected house price data, but for the month it is actually a touch higher, 0.2%, which just shows that the market really was focused on a hard Brexit last month. There have been several EU officials stating that prorogation should have no impact on negotiations, and some even see it my way as a strong lever to get a deal.

For all you hedgers, consider this: a 1-year ATMF option costs a bit more than 5 cents. While that is certainly higher than it was before Brexit occurred, I would contend that October will be a binary event, with a no-deal outcome driving a quite severe decline, likely to at least 1.10, while a deal should take us back to 1.30-1.35 quickly. In either case, 5 cents seems like a reasonable price to pay. And obviously, shorter term options will cost less with the same movement available.

And that’s really it for today. The dollar continues to largely grind higher vs. its EMG counterparts, and, quite frankly, its G10 counterparts as well. Equity markets remain in their trade euphoria clouds, and bond markets seem a bit more cautious. Yesterday saw US Q2 GDP revised down to 2.0%, as expected, but the consumer spending measurement was an even stronger than expected 4.7%. This morning the BEA releases Personal Income (exp 0.3%), Personal Spending (0.5%) and PCE (1.4%, 1.6% core) all at 8:30. We also see Chicago PMI (47.5) at 9:45 and Michigan Sentiment (92.3) at 10:00. The Fed is mercifully quiet going into the weekend so barring a shocking outcome in PCE or a White House tweet, the best bet is a continued slow grind higher in the dollar.

Good luck and good weekend
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Boris is Fumbling

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The British pound Sterling is tumbling
As traders think Boris is fumbling
His chance to succeed
By forcing, at speed
Hard Brexit with some Tories grumbling

It’s official, the only story of note in the FX markets today is Brexit. Despite central bank meetings and key data, the number one discussion is about how far the pound will fall in the event of a hard Brexit and how high the likelihood of a hard Brexit has become. Since Friday morning, the pound is down by 2.5% and there doesn’t appear to be a floor in the near term. It seems that traders have finally decided that BoJo was being serious when he said the UK would leave the EU with or without a deal come October 31. As such, today’s favorite analyst pastime is to guess how low the pound can fall with a hard Brexit. So far, there has been one estimate of parity with the dollar, although most estimates talk about 1.10 or so. The thing is, while Brexit will clearly be economically disruptive, it seems to me that the warnings of economic activity halting are vastly overstated for political reasons. After all, if you voted Remain, and you are in the media (which was largely the case) then painting as ugly a picture as possible suits your cause, whether or not it is based on factual analysis or fantasy.

But let’s discuss something else regarding the potential effects of a hard Brexit; the fears of a weaker currency and higher inflation. Are these really problems? Is not every developed country (and plenty of emerging ones) in the world seeking to weaken their currency through easier monetary policy in order to gain a competitive advantage in trade? Is not every developed country in the world complaining that inflation is too low and that lowered inflation expectations will hinder central bank capabilities? Obviously, the answer to both these questions is a resounding ‘YES’. And yet, the prospects of a weaker pound and higher inflation are seen as devastatingly bad for the UK.

Is that just jealousy? Or is that a demonstration of central bank concern when things happen beyond their control. After all, for the past decade, central banks have basically controlled the global economy. Methinks they have gotten a bit too comfortable with all that power. At any rate, apocalyptic scenarios rarely come to pass, and in fact, my sense is that while the pound can certainly fall further in the short run, we are far more likely to see the EU figure out that they don’t want a hard Brexit after all, and come back to the table. While a final agreement will never be finished in time, there will be real movement and Brexit in name only as the final details are hashed out over the ensuing months. And the pound will rebound sharply. But that move is still a few months away.

Away from Brexit, there has been other news. For example, the BOJ met last night and left policy rates on hold, as universally expected, but lowered their inflation forecast for 2019 to 1.0%, which is a stretch given it’s currently running at 0.5%. And their 2.0% target is increasingly distant as even through 2022 they see inflation only at 1.6%. At the same time, they indicated they will move quickly to ease further if necessary. The problem is they really don’t have much left to do. After all, they already own half the JGB market, and have bought both corporate bonds and equities. Certainly, they could cut rates further, but as we have learned over the past ten years, ZIRP and NIRP have not been all that effective. With all that said, the yen’s response was to rise modestly, 0.15%, but basically, the yen has traded between 107-109 for the past two months and shows no signs of breaking out.

We also saw some Eurozone data with French GDP disappointing in Q2, down to 0.2% vs. 0.3% expected, and Eurozone Confidence indicators were all weaker than expected, noticeably Business Confidence which fell to -0.12 from last month’s +0.17 and well below the +0.08 expected. This was the weakest reading in six years and simply highlights the spreading weakness on the continent. Once again I ask, do you really think the EU is willing to accept a hard Brexit with all the disruption that will entail? As to the euro, it is essentially unchanged on the day. Longer term, however, the euro remains in a very clear downtrend and I see nothing that will stop that in the near term. If anything, if Draghi and friends manage to be uber-uber dovish in September, it could accelerate the weakness.

Away from the big three, we are seeing weakness in the Scandies, down about 0.5%, as well as Aussie and Kiwi, both lower by about 0.25%. Interestingly, the EMG bloc has been much less active with almost no significant movement anywhere. It appears that traders are unwilling to do anything ahead of tomorrow’s FOMC statement and Powell’s press conference.

On the data front this morning we see Personal Income (exp 0.4%), Personal Spending (0.3%), Core PCE (0.2%, 1.7% Y/Y), Case-Shiller Home Prices (2.4%) and Consumer Confidence (125.0). Arguably, the PCE data is most important as that is what the Fed watches. Also, given that recent CPI data came in a tick higher than expected, if the same thing happens here, what will that do to the insurance cut narrative? The point is that the data of late has not warranted talk of a rate cut, at least not the US data. But will that stop Powell and company? The controlling narrative has become the Fed must cut to help the rest of the world. But that narrative will not depreciate the dollar very much. As such, I remain generally bullish the dollar for the foreseeable future.

Good luck
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QE Will Soon Have Returned

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The ECB started the trend
Which helped the bond market ascend
Then yesterday Jay
Was happy to say
A rate cut he’d clearly portend

Last night from Japan we all learned
Kuroda-san was not concerned
That yields there keep falling
And if growth is stalling
Then QE will soon have returned

This morning on Threadneedle Street
The Governor and his staff meet
Of late, they’ve implied
That rates have upside
But frankly, that tune’s obsolete

This morning, every story is the same story, interest rates are going lower. Tuesday, Signor Draghi told us so. Yesterday Chairman Jay reiterated the idea, and last night, Kuroda-san jumped on the bandwagon. This morning, Governor Carney left policy unchanged, although he continues to maintain that interest rates in the UK could rise if there is a smooth exit from the EU. Gilt markets, however, clearly don’t believe Carney as yields there fall and futures markets are pricing in a 25bp rate cut by the end of the year.

But it is not just those banks that are looking to ease policy. Remember, several weeks ago the RBA cut rates to a new record low at 1.25%, and last night, Governor Lowe indicated another cut was quite realistic. Bank Indonesia cut the reserve requirement by 0.50% last night and strongly hinted that an interest rate cut was on its way. While Bangko Sentral ng Pilipanas surprised most analysts by leaving rates on hold due to an uptick in inflation, that appears to be a temporary outcome. And adding to the Asian pressure is the growing belief that the RBNZ is also set to cut rates right before Australia does so.

In fact, looking around the world, there is only one place that is bucking this trend, Norway, which actually increased interest rates this morning by 25bp to a rate of 1.25%. In fairness, Norway continues to grow strongly, estimated 2.6% GDP growth this year, and inflation there is running above the 2.0% target and forecast to continue to increase. And it should be no surprise that the Norwegian krone is this morning’s best performing currency, rallying 1.0% vs. the euro and 1.5% vs. the dollar.

But in the end, save Norway, every story is still the same story. Global GDP growth is slowing amid increased trade concerns while inflationary pressures are generally absent almost everywhere. And in that environment, policy rates are going to continue to fall.

The market impacts ought not be too surprising either. Equity investors everywhere are giddy over the thought of still lower interest rates to help boost the economy. Or if not boosting the economy, at least allowing corporations to continue to issue more debt at extremely low levels and resume the stock repurchase schemes that have been underpinning equity market performance. Meanwhile, bond market investors are pushing the central banks even further, with new low yield levels in many countries. For example, in the 10-year space, German bunds are at -0.31%; Japanese JGB’s are at -0.18%; UK Gilts yield 0.81%; and Treasuries, here at home, have fallen to 2.01% right now, after touching 1.97% yesterday. It is abundantly clear that the market believes policy rates are going to continue to fall, and that QE is going to be reinstated soon.

As to the FX markets, yesterday saw the beginning of a sharp decline in the dollar with the euro up nearly 1.0% since the FOMC announcement, the pound +0.5% and the yen +0.6%. This makes sense as given the global rate structure, it remains clear that the Fed has the most room to ease from current settings, and thus the dollar is likely to suffer the most in the short term. However, as those changes take effect, I expect that the dollar’s decline will slow down, and we will find a new short-term equilibrium. I had suggested a 3%-5% decline before settling, and that still seems reasonable. After all, despite the fall yesterday, the dollar is simply back to where it was a week ago, before all the central bank fireworks.

With the BOE out of the way, the rest of the morning brings us two data releases, Initial Claims (exp 220K) and Philly Fed (11.0). For the former, there is still real scrutiny there given the weak NFP number earlier this month, and estimates have been creeping slightly higher. A big miss on the high side will likely see rates fall further and the dollar with them. As to the latter, given the huge miss by the Empire Manufacturing print on Monday, there will be wariness there as well. A big miss here will become the second piece of news that indicates a more acute slowing of the US economy, and that will also likely see rates fall further.

In fact, that is the theme for now, everything will be an excuse for rates to fall until the meeting between President’s Trump and Xi next week, with all eyes looking for signs that the trade situation will improve. And one other thing to remember is that tensions in the Middle East are increasing after Iran claimed to have shot down a US drone. Both oil and gold prices are much higher this morning, and I assure you, Treasuries are a beneficiary of this story as well.

So, for the dollar, things look dim in the short and medium term, however, I see no reason for a prolonged decline. Hedgers should take advantage of the weakness in the buck to add to hedges over the next few weeks.

Good luck
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Spring Next Year

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Interest rates shan’t
Rise ere spring next year. But might
They possibly fall?

This morning’s market theme is that things look bad everywhere, except perhaps in the US. Starting in Tokyo, the BOJ met last night and, to no one’s surprise, left their policy rate unchanged at -0.10%. They maintained their yield curve control target of 0.00% +/- 0.20% for 10-year JGB’s and they indicated they would continue to purchase JGB’s at a clip of ¥80 trillion per year. But there were two things they did change, one surprising and one confusing.

First the surprise; instead of claiming rates would remain low for an “extended period”, the new language gave a specific date, “at least through around spring 2020”. Of course, this gives them the flexibility to extend that date specifically, implying an even more dovish stance going forward. Market participants were not expecting any change to the language, but interestingly, the yen actually rallied after the report. Part of that could be because there was significant weakness in Asian equity markets and a bit of a risk-off scenario, but I also read that some analysts see this as a prelude to tighter policy. I don’t buy the latter idea, but it does have adherents. The second thing they did, the confusing one, was they indicated they would create a lending facility for their ETF portfolio. The unusual thing here is that generally, lending securities is a way to encourage short-selling, although they did couch the idea in terms of added liquidity to the market. Given they own more than 70% of the ETF market, it is clear that liquidity must be suffering, but I wouldn’t have thought bringing short-sellers to the party would be their goal.

In South Korea, Q1 GDP shrank -0.3%, a much worse outcome than the expected 0.3% growth, and largely caused by a sharp decline in exports and IP. This is an ominous sign for the global economy, and also calls into question the accuracy of the Chinese data last week. Given the tight relationship between Korean exports and Chinese growth, something seems out of place here. The market impact was a decline in the KOSPI (-0.5%), falling Korean yields and a decline in the KRW, which fell a further 0.6% and is now at its weakest point in two years. Look for the Bank of Korea to ease policy going forward.

Turning to Europe, the Swedish Riksbank left policy rates unchanged at -0.25%, as expected, but their statement indicated that there would be no rate hike later this year, as previously expected, given the slowing growth and lack of inflation in Sweden. While I foreshadowed this earlier this week, the market response was severe, with SEK falling 1.4%, although the Swedish OMX (stock market) rallied 1% on the news. You know, bad news is good because rates remain low.

One last central bank note, the Bank of Canada has thrown in the towel on normalizing policy, dropping any reference to higher rates in the future from their statement yesterday. Upon the release of the statement, the Loonie fell a quick 1%. Although it has since recovered a bit of that, it is still lower by 0.6% from before the meeting. It seems concerns over slowing growth now outweigh concerns over excess leverage in the private sector.

The other market note was the sharp decline in Chinese stocks with the Shanghai Composite falling 2.4% as traders and investors there lose faith that the PBOC is going to continue to support the economy, especially after the better than expected GDP data last week. Even the renminbi fell, -0.3%, although it has been especially stable for the past two months as the US-China trade talks continue. Speaking of which, the next round of face-to-face talks are set to get under way shortly, but there has been little in the way of news, either positive or negative, for the past two weeks.

One other thing about which we have not heard much lately is Brexit, where the internal political machinations continue in Parliament, but as yet, there has been no willingness to compromise on either side of the aisle. Of note is that the pound continues to fall, down a further 0.2% this morning and now firmly below 1.29. While there is no doubt that the dollar is strong across the board, it also strikes that some market participants are beginning to price in a chance of a no-deal Brexit again, despite Parliament’s stated aim of preventing that. As yet, there is no better alternative.

Finally, the euro is still under pressure this morning as well, down a further 0.2% this morning, which makes 1.5% in the past week. This morning’s only data point showed Unemployment in Spain rose unexpectedly to 14.7%, another sign of slowing growth throughout the Eurozone. At this point, the ECB is unwilling to commit to easing policy much further, but with the data misses piling up, at some point they are going to concede the point. Easier money is coming to the Eurozone as well.

This morning brings Initial Claims data (exp 200K) and Durable Goods (0.8%, 0.2% ex Transport). It doesn’t seem that either of these will change any views, and as we have seen all week, I expect that Q1 earnings will be the market’s overall focus. A bullish spin will continue to highlight the different trajectories of the US and the rest of the world, and ultimately, continue to support the dollar.

Good luck
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Both Driver and Bane

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Though Brexit and China remain
For markets, both driver and bane
The rest of the globe
Is worth a quick probe
Since some things are clearly germane

The markets are beginning to demonstrate Brexit fatigue as each day’s anxieties are no longer reflected in price movements. Broadly, a hard Brexit is still going to be bad and result in a significant decline in the pound, and a signed deal should see the pound rally somewhat, but the political machinations are just getting annoying at this point. Yesterday’s news was the House of Commons voted to seek a delay, although there has been no definition of how long that delay should be. It seems PM May is going to bring her deal to the floor one more time to see if she can get it passed this time:

Although her rep’s suffered much harm
The PM has rung the alarm
It’s time to get real
And vote for her deal
Perhaps the third time is the charm

The threat to the Brexiteers is a long delay opens the way for a reversal of the process, so this deal is better than that outcome. Of course, as I have written before, a delay requires unanimity from the rest of the EU and given the uncertainty of what can be gained by a delay at this time, it still appears there is a real risk of a hard Brexit, despite Parliament’s vote yesterday.

The latest news is a delay
In Brexit is what’s on the way
But will that resolve
The issues involved
Don’t count on it in any way

As to the pound, yesterday it fell, today it is rallying, but in general, it is still stuck. For the past three plus weeks it has traded between 1.30 and 1.33, albeit visiting both sides several times. Let’s move on.

The China trade story continues in slow motion as hopes of a late March meeting between President’s Xi and Trump have now faded to late April. Of note overnight was a new law passed by the Chinese government that alleges to address IP theft and international investment. While that certainly appears to be in response to US concerns, the lack of an enforcement mechanism remains a significant obstacle to concluding the process. However, it does appear to be a tacit admission that IP theft has been a part of the program in the past, despite vehement protestations on the part of the Chinese. But for now, this issue is headed to the back burner and will only matter to markets again when a deal seems imminent, or the talks collapse.

So what else is happening in the world? Well, global growth remains under pressure with data around the world indicating a slowdown is essentially universal. German production, US housing, Japanese inflation, you name it and the data is weaker than expected, and weaker than targeted. What this means is that pretty much every central bank around the world, at least in the developed world, has stopped thinking about policy normalization and is back on the easy money bus.

While Chairman Powell takes the brunt of the criticism for his quick volte-face last December, we have seen it everywhere. ECB President Draghi will have spent eight years at the helm and only cut rates and added monetary stimulus, all to achieve average growth of a whopping 1.5% or so with inflation remaining well below the target of 2.0% throughout his tenure. And, as he vacates the seat, he will leave his successor with further ease ongoing (TLTRO’s) and no prospect of a rate hike for years to come. But hey, perpetual debt-fueled slow growth and negative interest rates should be great for the stock market! What could possibly go wrong?

Meanwhile, the BOJ finds itself in exactly the same place as the ECB, lackluster growth, virtually no inflation and monetary policy set at extreme ease. Last night, Kuroda-san and his friends left policy unchanged (although two BOJ members voted for further ease) and said that the 2.0% inflation target remained appropriate and they were on track to achieve it…eventually. Alas, unless anti-aging medicines are available soon, I don’t think any of us will ever see that outcome. The yen’s response was to sink slightly further, falling 0.2%, and it is trading near its weakest levels of the year. However, in the big scheme of things, it remains right in the middle of its long-term trading range. My point is that we will need a stronger catalyst than more of the same from Kuroda to change things.

Other noteworthy currency stories are the weakness in HKD, as a glut of cash pouring into the island territory has driven interest rates there down significantly and opened up a carry trade opportunity. The HKMA has already spent close to $1 billion supporting the currency at the floor of its band over the past two weeks and seems likely to spend another $5-$7 billion before markets are balanced again.

Sweden has watched its krone depreciate steadily as slowing growth has caused a change in the Riksbank’s tune. In December, it was assumed they would be raising rates and exiting NIRP given the growth trajectory, which led to some modest currency strength. However, the reality has been the growth has never appeared and now the market has priced out any rate hikes. At the same time, FX traders have all unwound those long krone positions and pushed down the SEK by more than 4% this year. While it has rallied 0.4% overnight, it remains the key underperformer in the G10 this year. in fact, there is talk that the Riksbank may need to intervene directly in FX markets if things get much worse, although given the lack of inflation, it seems to me that is excessive.

So you see, there is a world beyond Brexit! As to today’s session, we see a bit more data from the US including: Empire Manufacturing (exp 10.0); IP (0.4%); Capacity Utilization (7.4%); JOLT’s Job Openings (7.31M); and Michigan Sentiment (95.3). This is a nice array of data which can help give an overall assessment as to whether the economy is continuing to sag, or if there are some possible bright spots. But unless everything is extraordinarily strong, I imagine that it will have limited direct impact and the dollar, which has been broadly under pressure today (after a rally yesterday) will continue to slide a little. Right now, there is no strong directional view as traders await the next central bank pronouncements. With the Fed, that comes next week. Until then, look for range trading.

Good luck and good weekend
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Bred On Champagne

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In Davos, the global elite
Are gathering midst their conceit
That they know what’s best
For all of the rest
Though this year they’re feeling some heat

As growth ‘round the world starts to wane
This group, which was bred on champagne
Is starting to find
Their sway has declined
And people treat them with disdain

This is Davos week, when the World Economic Forum meets in Switzerland to discuss global issues regarding trade, finance, economics and social trends. Historically, this had been a critical stopping point for those trying to get their message across, notably politicians from around the world, as well as corporate leaders and celebrities. But this year, it has lost some of its luster. Not only are key politicians missing (the entire US entourage, PM May, President Xi, President Macron, AMLO from Mexico and others), but the broad-based rejection of globalist policies that have led to a significant increase in populism around the world has reduced the impact and influence of the attendees. Of course, this hasn’t prevented those who are attending from declaring their certitude of the future, it just puts a more jaundiced eye on the matter. As to the market impact of this soiree, the lack of keynote addresses by policymakers of note has resulted in quite a reduction of influence. But that doesn’t mean we won’t see more headlines, it just doesn’t seem like it will matter that much.

Inflation forecasts
In Japan have been reduced
Again. Is this news?

The BOJ met last night and left policy settings unchanged, as universally expected. This means that the BOJ is still purchasing assets at a rate of ¥80 trillion per year (ostensibly) and interest rates remain at -0.10%. Their problem is that despite the fact that they have been doing this for more than 6 years, as well as purchasing corporate bonds and equity ETF’s, they are actually getting worse results. Last night they downgraded their growth and inflation forecasts to 0.9% for both GDP and CPI as they continuously fail in their attempts to stoke price increases.

While the Fed has already begun normalizing policy and the ECB is trying to move in that direction (although I think they missed the boat on that), the BOJ is making no pretenses about the fact that QE is a fact of life for the foreseeable future. Policy failure at the central bank level has become the norm, not the exception, and the BOJ is Exhibit A. As such, the yen is very likely to see its value remain beholden to the market’s overall risk appetite. If we continue to see sessions like yesterday, where equities and commodities suffer while Treasuries are bid, you can be pretty sure the yen will strengthen. While this morning the currency is actually weaker by 0.3%, that seems more like a position adjustment rather than a commentary on risk. In fact, if equities continue to suffer, look for the yen to regain its lost ground and then some.

As to Brexit, the pound is trading back above 1.30 this morning for the first time since the first week of November, which was arguably more about the US elections than the UK. But the market is becoming increasingly convinced that a hard Brexit is off the table, and that some type of deal will get done, maybe not by March, but then after a several month delay. If this is your belief, then the pound clearly has further to rally, as the market remains net short, but my only advice is to be very careful as policy mistakes are well within the remit of all government organizations, not just central banks.

Beyond those stories, there has been no movement on the trade talks, although Larry Kudlow did highlight that some type of verification would be needed before anything is agreed. US data yesterday showed a much weaker than expected housing market with Existing Home Sales falling 10.0% since last year to just 4.99M in December. The Fed is silent as they prepare for next week’s meeting and the ECB is silent as they prepare for tomorrow’s meeting. In other words, it is not that exciting. Equity futures are pointing modestly higher, about 0.25%, although that is after a >1% decline in all markets yesterday. Treasury yields are higher by 2bps and oil prices are modestly higher (0.7%) after a sharper decline yesterday. Overall, the market remains unexciting and I expect that until we see a resolution of one of the key issues, notably trade or Brexit, things are likely to remain quiet. That said, it does appear that there are ample underlying concerns to warrant a fully hedged position for risk managers.

Good luck
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Is That Despair?

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Forward guidance is
Kuroda-san’s newest hope
Or is that despair?

The BOJ has committed to keep the current extremely low levels for short- and long-term interest rates for an “extended period of time.” Many of you will recognize this phrase as Ben Bernanke’s iteration of forward guidance. This is the effort by central banks to explain to the market that even though rates cannot seemingly go any lower, they promise to prevent them from going higher for the foreseeable future. Alas, forward guidance is akin to Hotel California, from which, as The Eagles famously sang back in 1976, “you can check out but you can never leave.” As the Fed found out, and the ECB will learn once they finally end QE (assuming they actually do so), changing tack once you have promised zero rates forever can have market ramifications. The first indication that forward guidance might be a problem came with the ‘taper tantrum’ in 2013, but I’m confident it won’t be the last.

However, for the BOJ, now trumps the future, and they needed to do something now. But forward guidance was not the only thing they added last night. It was the cover for their attempts to adjust policy without actually tightening. So, yield curve control now has a +/- 20bp range around 0.0% for the 10-year JGB, double the previous level, and thus somewhat more flexible. And they reduced the amount of reserves subject to the -0.10% deposit rate in order to alleviate some of the local banks’ profit issues. In the end, their commitment to maintaining zero interest rates for that extended period of time was sufficient for FX traders to sell the yen (it fell -0.40%), and JGB yields actually fell a few bps, closing at 0.065%, which is down from 0.11% ahead of the meeting. All in all, I guess the BOJ did a good job last night.

There is, however, one other thing to mention, and that is they reduced their own inflation forecasts (to 1.1% in 2019, 1.5% in 2020 and 1.6% in 2021) for the next three years, indicating that even they don’t expect to achieve that elusive 2.0% target before 2022 at the earliest. In the end, the BOJ will continue to buy JGB’s and equity ETF’s and unless there is a substantial acceleration in global growth, (something which seems increasingly unlikely) they will continue to miss their inflation target for a very long time. As to the yen, I expect that while it fell a bit last night, it is still likely to drift higher over time.

In Europe the story is still
That growth there is starting to chill
The data last night
Did naught to delight
Poor Mario, testing his will

Beyond the BOJ, and ahead of the FOMC announcement tomorrow, the major news was from the Eurozone where GDP and Inflation data was released. What we learned was that, on the whole, growth continued to slow while inflation edged higher than expected. Eurozone GDP rose 0.3% in Q2, its slowest pace in a year, while headline inflation rose 2.1%, its fastest rate since early 2013. Of course the latter was predicated on higher energy prices with core CPI rising only 1.1%, still a long way from the ECB’s target. The point is that given the slowing growth trajectory in the Eurozone, it seems that Draghi’s confidence in faster growth causing inflation to pick up on the continent may be unwarranted. But that remains the official line, and it appears that the FX market has accepted it as gospel as the euro has traded higher for a third consecutive day (+0.3%) and is now back in the top half of its trading range. If Q3 growth continues the trajectory that Q2 has extended, it will call into question whether the ECB can stop buying bonds, or at the very least, just how long rates will remain at -0.4%, with those looking for a September 2019 rate hike sure to be disappointed.

There is one country in Europe, however, that is performing well, Sweden. GDP growth there surprised the market yesterday, rising 1.0% in Q2 and 3.3% Y/Y. This has encouraged speculation that the Riksbank will be raising rates fairly soon and supported the krone, which has rallied 1.0% since the announcement.

The final piece of news to discuss from last night was from China, where the PMI readings all fell below expectations. The official Manufacturing data was released at 51.2, down from last month’s 51.5 and the third consecutive monthly decline. The non-manufacturing number fell to 54.0, its weakest print since October 2016. These are the first data from China that include the impact of the US tariffs, and so are an indication that the Chinese economy is feeling some effects. I expect that the government there will add more stimulus to offset any more severe impact, but that will simply further complicate their efforts at reducing excess leverage in the economy. Meanwhile, the renminbi slid 0.25% overnight.

This morning’s data releases bring us Personal Income (exp 0.4%), Personal Spending (0.4%) and PCE (2.3% headline, 2.0% core), as well as the Case-Shiller Home price index (6.4%), Chicago PMI (62.0) and Consumer Confidence (126.0). In other words, there is much for us to learn about the economy. While I believe the PCE data could be market moving, especially if it is stronger than expected, I continue to believe that traders and investors remain far more focused on Friday’s payroll report than this data. Recent weakness in equity markets has some folks on edge, although futures this morning look benign. But if we do see that weakness continue, the chances of a full-blown risk off scenario materializing will grow substantially. And that means, the dollar has the potential to rally quite sharply. Keep that in mind as a tail risk, one where the tail grows fatter each day that equity markets disappoint.

Good luck
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Still At Its Peak

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Three central bank meetings this week
Seem unlikely, havoc to wreak
When they all adjourn
Attention will turn
To joblessness, still at its peak

In the current central bank calendric cycle, the ECB meeting was the first to be completed, and last Thursday we learned virtually nothing new about Mario Draghi’s plans. The ECB is going to reduce QE further starting in October and is due to end it completely by year end. As to interest rates, ‘through summer’ remains the watchword, with markets forecasting a 10bp rate rise in either September or October of next year.

This week brings us the other three big central bank meetings, starting with the BOJ’s announcement tomorrow evening, then the FOMC on Wednesday and finally the BOE on Thursday. Going in reverse order, the market remains convinced that Governor Carney will raise rates 25bps, with a more than 80% probability priced in by futures traders. While I think it is a mistake, it does seem increasingly likely it will be the outcome. As to the Fed, there are no expectations of any policy adjustments at this meeting, and as there is no press conference following, I expect that the statement, when released Wednesday afternoon, will have little market impact.

This takes us to tomorrow evening’s BOJ meeting, which is the only one where there seems to be any real uncertainty. Last week I discussed the questions at hand which boil down to whether or not Kuroda and company have come to believe that QQE is not only ineffective, but actually beginning to have a detrimental impact on the Japanese economy. After all, they have been at it for the better part of five years and have still had zero success in achieving their 2.0% inflation goal. The three biggest problems are that Japanese banks have seen their business models decimated by increasingly narrow lending spreads; the ETF purchase program has had an increasingly large distortive impact on the Japanese stock markets as the BOJ now owns roughly 4% of all Japanese equities; and finally, the yield curve control plan has essentially broken the JGB market as evidenced by the fact that they continue to see sessions where there are actually no trades in the 10-year JGB. (Consider what would happen if there were no trades in 10-year Treasuries one day!)

With all of this as baggage, there has been increasing discussion that the BOJ may seek to tweak the program to try to make it more effective. However, they have painted themselves into a corner because if they reduce their activity in the JGB market, the market is likely to see it as a reduced commitment to QE and it is likely to result in higher yields there, which can easily lead to two separate but related outcomes. First, USDJPY is likely to fall further, as higher JGB yields lead to more interest for Japanese investors to bring their funds home. Given the disinflationary impact of a stronger currency, this would be a disaster. And second, if there is less support for JGB’s, given the fungibility of money and the open capital markets that exist, we are likely to see yields rise in US, UK, European and other developed markets. While Chairman Powell may welcome this as it will reduce concern over the Fed inverting the yield curve, the rest of the world, which retains far easier monetary policy, is likely to be somewhat less welcoming of that outcome. And this is all based on anonymous reports that the BOJ is going to make some technical adjustments to their program, not change the nature of what they are doing. So if you are looking for some fireworks this week, the BOJ is your best bet.

However, beyond the central banks, the market will turn its attention to Friday’s employment report here in the US. Last Friday saw a robust GDP report, as widely expected, and further proof of the divergence between the US and the rest of the global economy. This Friday could simply add to that impression. Here is the full listing of this week’s data, which is quite robust:

Tuesday BOJ Rate Decision -0.10% (unchanged)
  Personal Income 0.4%
  Personal Spending 0.4%
  PCE 0.1% (2.3% Y/Y)
  Core PCE 0.1% (2.0% Y/Y)
  Case-Shiller Home Prices 6.4%
  Chicago PMI 62.0
Wednesday ADP Employment 185K
  ISM Manufacturing 59.5
  ISM Prices Paid 75.8
  FOMC Rate Decision 2.00% (unchanged)
Thursday BOE Rate Decision 0.75% (+0.25%)
  Initial Claims 221K
  Factory Orders 0.7%
Friday Nonfarm Payrolls 190K
  Private Payrolls 185K
  Manufacturing Payrolls 22K
  Unemployment Rate 3.9%
  Average Hourly Earnings 0.3% (2.7% Y/Y)
  Average Weekly Hours 34.5
  Trade Balance -$46.2B
  ISM Non-Manufacturing 58.7

So, as you can see there is much to be learned this week. With the focus on the central banks and Friday’s payroll data, don’t lose sight of tomorrow’s PCE report, because remember, that is the Fed’s go-to number on inflation. Overall, looking at forecasts, things remain remarkably strong in the US economy this long into an expansion, which is something that has many folks concerned. We also continue to see important corporate earnings releases this week for Q2, which given the high profile misses we had last week, could well impact markets beyond individual equity names.

As to the dollar through all this, it is a touch softer this morning, but remains on the strong side of its recent trading range. While I still like it higher, there is so much potential new information coming this week, it is probably wisest to remain as neutral as possible for now. For hedgers, that means the 50% rule is in effect.

Good luck
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