After hopes for a bigger and more aggressive monetary stimulus package were dashed by the latest Bank of Japan decision, the Yen continues its recent trend of strengthening, keeping the prevailing downtrend from the outset of the year intact. Although the Central Government under the stewardship of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pressured the Central Bank to act more aggressively, the Bank of Japan refrained from dropping interest rates further, instead opting to focus on ETF purchases and lending to corporations to help spur the export economy. This decision comes on the heels of a more pronounced decline in household spending which fell by -2.20% on an annualized basis combined with the consumer price index which remained firmly in deflationary territory. The silver lining was a slight improvement in the unemployment rate and improved industrial production. EURJPY had fallen as much as 200 pips on the session, before rebounding modestly to 114.60.
Bank of Japan Disappoints Financial Markets
Daily Analysis - 29/07/2016