Know What's Happening in Currencies
Know What's Happening in Currencies
Yen emerges as world’s cheapest funding currency, fueling a $435B carry‑trade
The Bank of Japan’s ultra‑loose stance has turned the yen into the cheapest source of funding globally, underpinning a massive carry‑trade that amassed roughly $435 billion between 2022 and 2024. A modest rate hike in March 2024 barely dented the trade, but markets remain wary of a sudden, aggressive tightening that could compress spreads and force borrowers to unwind yen‑denominated debt.
The U.S. dollar surged against the Taiwan dollar on March 9, closing at NT$31.920, a gain of NT$0.242. Trading volume hit US$2.728 billion, with the pair opening at NT$31.720 and peaking at NT$31.952. The sharp rise reflects heightened dollar strength in Asian markets. The move comes amid global risk‑off sentiment and tighter U.S. monetary policy.
Traders have sharply increased bets that the European Central Bank will deliver two full 25‑basis‑point rate hikes before year‑end, up from a single hike priced on Friday. The shift follows a recent spike in energy prices that has reignited fears...
Traders have lifted the probability of a Bank of England rate hike this year to roughly 50%, up from near‑zero earlier in the month. The shift follows persistent inflation readings and tighter labour market data that suggest price pressures remain...
Bank of Korea Governor Chang Yong Rhee, appointed in April 2022, argues that central banks must broaden their remit beyond pure monetary policy. He has transformed the BoK into a more public‑facing institution, adding video studios, visualizations, staff media training...
𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 🇿🇦 The SARB’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will meet 𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄 more times in 2026. Bookmark these dates 🔻 🇿🇦2̶9̶t̶h̶ ̶J̶a̶n̶u̶a̶r̶y̶ ( Unchanged ) ✅ 🇿🇦26th March 🇿🇦28th May 🇿🇦23rd July 🇿🇦23rd September 🇿🇦19th November
‼️Hedge funds are EXTREMELY BEARISH on the US Dollar: Net dollar positioning of hedge funds and other asset managers is down to -$18.9 billion, near the most bearish level in at least 3 years. Hedge funds are getting caught off guard. 👇 https://globalmarketsinvestor.beehiiv.com/p/us-stocks-dropped-amid-rising-ai-and-geopolitical-uncertainty-weekly-market-recap-trading-week-09-20-a312
A new ECB research bulletin exploits regional data from 168 NUTS‑2 areas across 11 euro‑area countries (1999‑2023) to re‑estimate the Phillips curve. Controlling for region and time fixed effects yields a slope of –0.19, far steeper than the –0.01 found...
Markets pricing in rate hikes from the ECB, the BoE... and the SNB. You gotta be kidding me.
$EURUSD gapped down -0.6% over the weekend. That is the largest bearish gap in 11 months. Of the last four gaps lower of this size or greater, the pair mounts a quick and significant recovery https://t.co/1MB9YzNdvG
The ongoing Iran war is intensifying the Bank of Japan’s stagflation dilemma, forcing a choice between raising rates or maintaining ultra‑low policy for longer. Core inflation excluding food and energy fell further below the BOJ’s 2% target in January, while...
1/6 China's deflationary environment continues to improve, with high-than-expected numbers in February. CPI inflation was 1.3% year on year and 1.0% month on month. Month-on-month inflation has been positive since December and mostly positive since July. https://t.co/gpaBJ53yli
DBS is urging Singapore‑based SMEs to hedge at least half of their foreign‑exchange exposure amid heightened volatility from the Middle‑East conflict. The bank’s SecureFX facility, which lets companies lock in rates up to US$1 million without credit lines, is already used...
Iran’s financial markets entered a pronounced lull after US and Israeli strikes heightened geopolitical risk, leaving many trading venues partially shut and liquidity thin. Online dollar pricing via USDT surged to IRR 1,550,000 per dollar, yet physical dollar dealers accept roughly...
Friday marked a turning point. Brent rose 9% (CO1), but - instead of a broad sell-off across EM - South Africa (ZAR), Brazil (BRL) and Chile (CLP) rallied. Markets are transitioning to rewarding commodity exporters like in 2022 after the...
Safra Group completed its majority‑stake acquisition of Saxo Bank and named Daniel Belfer CEO. Pepperstone owners were ordered to pay A$96 million to former shareholder CPE Capital after a protracted legal dispute. Former FX executives Nicolas Shamtanis and Stathis Xenos launched...
Israel’s inflation is 1.8%/yr. Israel’s broad money supply is growing at 8.1%/yr. That's WITHIN Hanke's Golden Growth Rate range of 7.7%-9.7%/yr, a rate consistent w/ hitting Israel’s 1%-3%/yr inflation target. THE INFLATION STORY = A MONEY SUPPLY STORY. https://t.co/CWltetUlYU
Mexico’s inflation is 3.8%/yr. Mexico’s money supply (M4) is growing at 9.2%/yr. That's WITHIN Hanke's Golden Growth Rate of 7.3%-9.3%/yr, a rate consistent w/ hitting Mexico’s 2%-4%/yr inflation target. THE INFLATION STORY = A MONEY SUPPLY STORY. https://t.co/jQ05GUvmPW
USDCAD encountered firm resistance around the 1.3750 mark, prompting a pullback that resulted in its second consecutive weekly decline. The price weakness coincided with escalating strikes across the Middle East, which have amplified global risk aversion. An Elliott Wave assessment...
Iran war headlines will be in focus this week but US inflation will also be front and center. Here are the reports to watch 👇 🇺🇸 US -CPI -Personal Income/Spending -UMich Sentiment Index -Durable Goods -Housing Data 🇪🇺 EZ -EZ & GE IP -GE Trade 🇨🇦 CA -Jobs -Trade
Something really unusual happened yesterday. While oil was pushing above $90 per barrel, the Dollar fell. That's very significant because we'd normally expect to see the oil spike drive the Dollar higher. We've transitioned back into a weak Dollar world... https://t.co/2nXDj5db75...
Gold prices have surged 47.6% since August 2025, reaching $5,092 per ounce, as central banks shift from Treasury securities to gold. The United States and Germany now report gold comprising over 80% of their reserve portfolios, with Italy and India also...
In the space of one week, we've gone from everyone saying oil prices would barely move to now everyone falling over themselves predicting $100 oil. Whatever. I don't think that's where the trade is. The trade is in the Dollar,...
In trade-weighted terms, the Yen is lower now than mid-2024 when Japan intervened to prop it up. Japan's high public debt is a terrible weakness. When unexpected shocks come along - like war in Iran - its hands are tied...
A new study uses large‑language‑model techniques to convert the IMF’s 70‑year AREAER narrative archive into a daily, country‑level dataset of cross‑border financial restrictions (iBoP‑C and iBoP‑S). The high‑frequency indices reveal a stop‑go pattern of financial liberalisation, with advanced economies easing...
The Federal Reserve entered 2026 optimistic about a soft landing, but the sudden Iran‑Israel conflict has driven crude above $95 per barrel, pushing gasoline prices to record highs and reviving cost‑push inflation concerns. A weak jobs report further erodes labor‑market...
In this episode, host David interviews Peter Conti‑Brown about his recent essay outlining three possible reforms to the Fed‑Treasury relationship, focusing on discount‑window liquidity and its stigma. They discuss recent remarks by Fed Governor Michelle Bowman and Treasury Secretary Janet...
The upcoming week (March 7‑13, 2026) is packed with macroeconomic releases and policy events. Central banks in Pakistan, Turkey, Peru and Serbia will hold monetary policy reviews, while the United States publishes a full slate of data including quarterly GDP, PCE deflator,...
The Fed’s biggest fear has always been having to choose between fighting inflation and protecting jobs. Friday’s employment report brought that dilemma a step closer. “Let’s not overreact to one month’s numbers, but an environment in which inflation is rising and...
Federal Reserve President Christopher Hammack warned that inflation remains too high and broadly based, signaling that the central bank will likely keep interest rates on hold for an extended period. He reaffirmed the Fed’s commitment to its inflation mandate while...
Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Collins signaled that the central bank’s policy rate will likely remain unchanged for the foreseeable future. He emphasized that any future rate cuts will require clear evidence that inflation is sustainably moving toward the 2% target....
ECB Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel said the central bank’s policy stance remains appropriate despite a temporary inflation overshoot, provided expectations stay anchored. She highlighted that inflation is projected to meet the 2% target over the medium term, reinforcing a...
In the 10 days after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Brent rose 32%. We're now up 25% since the war with Iran began, which - to me - says there's more upside. Given all this, the Dollar is trading soft...
Bolivia's inflation remains out of control at 19.56%/yr. That is nearly 4x its August 2024 rate of 5.2%/yr. To kill inflation, Bolivia must dollarize. https://t.co/oK5i4Lims6
In a March 2026 speech, ECB Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel argued that, despite calls for a dual mandate, single‑mandate and dual‑mandate central banks usually adopt similar policy actions because price stability constrains any employment‑focused easing. She highlighted that more...
New @ForwardGuidance chartbook just dropped for this week's episode. Wanted to call out a few we did not discuss live on the pod. Takeaway: Gold positioning length has been absolutely flushed (and these charts are few days old, before the recent...
Canadian Dollar Forecast: USD/CAD Rejected at Resistance Again – Breakdown Risk Builds https://t.co/WgcEZNsTLi $USDCAD Weekly Chart https://t.co/vHGLydn1EX
Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor and Donald Trump’s pick, has been nominated to chair the Federal Reserve. Warsh is known for advocating aggressive rate cuts and a loose monetary stance that many analysts deem risky in the current inflationary...
Yen could be setting up for a win-win type environment. 1. War deescalates, oil down, dollar down. 2. War escalates and everything goes to shit, capital flight from US assets, flight to Yen safe haven. It's interesting to me because there's a...
Was looking for this dollar rally upon Iran invasion but now it is at a critical juncture. Metals showing life could be signal that this is about as high as DXY gets. Despite this squeeze higher, fundamentals for USD and...
U.S. non‑farm payrolls unexpectedly dropped 92,000 in February, pushing the unemployment rate up to 4.4% and prompting analysts to anticipate further Federal Reserve rate cuts. The dollar index (DXY) slipped to 99.063 from 99.308 as markets digested the weaker labor...
A fundamental thread to keep an eye on after the NFPs miss: the implied FOMC rate cuts through Fed Funds futures overlaid with the $DXY Dollar index. CPI and PCE next week. FOMC rate decision the Wednesday after next https://t.co/Rslg81c0CC
US #NFPs dropped in February by -92K vs +70K expected and +126K added in January. This was the biggest downside 'surprise' (-162K) since the pandemic shutdown (specifically Aug 2021) https://t.co/HgS3Y8EA9t
The article pits India’s Digital Rupee against the EU’s Digital Euro, evaluating which central bank digital currency (CBDC) best serves commercial users. It notes the Digital Rupee’s near‑real‑time settlement, open‑source APIs, and early integration with Indian e‑commerce giants, while the...
At a time when markets are pushing back Fed cut odds because of the oil spike, seeing jobs data that demands rate cuts leaves everyone unhappy. Stagflation, directionally. Not there yet but pointing that way.
I’ve been on the bearish end of the spectrum on Iran. The Straits of Hormuz are a big chokepoint. Iran just has to blow up one oil tanker to cause a global crisis. Thanks to @SoumayaKeynes for having me on...
Capital.com reported a 49% jump in active retail traders and a 73% rise in total trading volume on 2 March as the Middle East conflict intensified. Oil surged to become the platform’s second‑most‑traded instrument, with new oil traders up 1,255% and...
If things were normal, the Dollar should be falling sharply right now. We just got a -1.9 standard deviation surprise on payrolls, which should be weighing on USD. But nothing about today is normal. We're in a massive risk-off and...
India’s central bank has continued its digital rupee (E₹) pilot, but a retail rollout on e‑commerce platforms such as Amazon and Flipkart remains unrealised. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has onboarded a handful of banks, fintechs and select merchants...
February Non-Farm Payrolls prints at -92K vs expected 58K - previously 126K Unemployment ticks up to 4.4% vs expected hold
The European Central Bank entered the current preparation phase for a digital euro in November 2025, concentrating on technical readiness, market engagement, and legislative support. A controlled pilot with real‑world transactions is slated for mid‑2027, with a potential first issuance targeted...
