Forex News from InstaForex

[InstaForex Gertrude]

Japan Auto Production Continues To Expand





Japan's automobile production increased for the sixth consecutive month in February, data from the Japan Automobile Manufacturers' Association showed Monday.
Driven by huge domestic demand, auto production rose 7.1 percent or 57,186 units from a year ago to 863,397 units in February. Domestic sales surged 18.4 percent on a yearly basis, while exports declined 6 percent. At the same time, motorcycle production gained 9.6 percent annually to 56,348 units. This was the sixth consecutive rise in output. Domestic sales of motorcycle advanced 26.3 percent and exports climbed 21.1 percent.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Australia Leaves Key Rate Unchanged At 2.5%





The Reserve Bank of Australia left its key interest rate unchanged on Tuesday as widely expected by economists. Policymakers led by Governor Glenn Stevens decided to maintain the cash rate at 2.50 percent. Members assessed the most prudent course is likely to be a period of stability in interest rates, the central bank said in a statement. The bank expects inflation to be consistent with the 2-3 percent target over the next two years. In the Board's judgement, monetary policy is appropriately configured to foster sustainable growth in demand and inflation outcomes consistent with the target. Looking ahead, the bank said continued accommodative monetary policy should provide support to demand, and help growth to strengthen over time.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

BoJ Tankan: Inflation Forecast 1.1% For Next Year





The expectation for inflation over the next year in Japan is 1.1 percent, the Bank of Japan said on Wednesday in the second half of its quarterly Tankan survey of consumer sentiment.
According to the all enterprise component, the inflation rate is expected to rise to 1.8 percent over the next three years, and then to 2.1 percent in five years.
However, among large manufacturers, inflation is expected to add just 0.2 percent over the next year, be flat in three years and then fall 0.3 percent in five years.
Among large non-manufacturers, inflation is called at 0.9 percent in the next year, 1.3 percent in three years and 1.5 percent in five years.
The first portion of the Tankan was released on Tuesday.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Contraction Slows For Australia Construction Sector





An index monitoring activity in Australia's construction sector saw a seasonally adjusted score of 46.2 in March, the Australian Industry Group and Housing Industry Association said on Monday in their Performance of Construction Index - up from 44.2 in February. Construction activity contracted for the third straight month, the survey showed, as a score below 50 signals decline and a score above 50 means expansion.
"As is the case with the broader economy, the rebalancing of the construction sector as mining-related activity slows still has a considerable way to go," said AiG Director of Public Policy Peter Burn in a release accompanying the data.
Among the individual components of the survey, the new orders sub-index saw its contraction slow dramatically, jumping from 39.5 in February to 48.3 in March.
The employment sub-index continued to weaken, falling from 46.0 in February to 42.7. The sub-index for construction climbed from 45.3 in February to 48.3 in March. House building dipped from 52.2 in the previous month to 50.8, while apartment building fell from 46.6 to 45.6.
Commercial construction tumbled from 59.9 to 56.5 points, and engineering construction surged from 39.7 to 45.5.
"What the sector and broader economy needs, however, is a sustained recovery in new home building commensurate with average construction levels being considerably higher over coming decades than those achieved over the past 20 years," said HIA chief economist Harley Dale.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Yen Ticks Down After Bank Of Japan Monetary Policy Decision





As expected, the Bank of Japan maintained its monetary easing program unchanged in the Asian session on Tuesday. Following the announcement, the yen inched down against other major currencies. The yen was trading at 102.93 against the greenback, 141.46 against the euro, 115.94 against the franc and 171.01 against the pound around 11:01 pm ET.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

NZ Dollar Strengthens Against Most Majors




The New Zealand dollar drifted higher against most major rivals in early Asian deals on Wednesday.
The kiwi spiked up to 1.5835 against the euro, a level not seen since March 28. Against the greenback, the kiwi approached 0.8707 for the first time since August 2011.
The kiwi rose to 88.72 against the yen from Tuesday's closing quote of 88.25.
If the kiwi extends gain, it may face resistance around 0.875 against the greenback, 1.56 against the euro and 89.8 against the yen.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

China Has $7.71 Billion Trade Surplus In March




China posted a merchandise trade surplus of $7.71 billion in March, the customs office said on Thursday.
That topped forecasts for a surplus of $0.9 billion following the $23.0 billion shortfall - largely due to the Lunar New Year holiday - in the previous month.
Exports were down 6.6 percent on year, missing expectations for an increase of 4.0 percent following the 18.1 percent contraction in February. Imports tumbled an annual 11.3 percent versus forecasts for a gain of 2.4 percent following the 10.1 percent increase a month earlier.

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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Euro Rises To 8- Day High Against Pound




The European currency strengthened against the pound in the early Asian session on Friday. The euro advanced to an 8-day high of 0.8287 against the British currency, up almost 0.2 percent from yesterday's closing quote of 0.8273. If the euro continues its uptrend, it may find the resistance around the 0.83 area.

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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Gold at 3-Week High on Ukraine Tensions




Spot gold rose to a three-week high of $1,328.30 an ounce before settling to trade up 0.6 percent at $1,325.50 by 0030 GMT
The United States is prepared to step up sanctions against Moscow if pro-Russian military actions in eastern Ukraine continue, a senior U.S. envoy said. The next round of U.S. sanctions are expected to target Russian business sectors such as mining, banking and ene
SPDR Gold Trust GLD, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 1.80 tonnes to 804.42 tonnes on Friday.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Aussie Slightly Up Following RBA Minutes




Following the release of the Reserve Bank of Australia's minutes of monetary policy meeting held on April 1 in early Asian deals on Tuesday at 9:30 pm ET, the aussie rose slightly against other major currencies. The aussie was trading at 0.9409 against the greenback, 95.90 against the yen, 1.4683 against the euro and 1.0849 against the kiwi around 9:33 pm ET.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Yen Weakens Against Most Majors




The Japanese yen declined against most major currencies in Asian deals on Wednesday. The yen slipped to 102.19 against the greenback, a level not seen since April 8. The yen hit 5-day lows of 141.15 against the euro, 116.05 against the franc and 93.04 against the loonie, compared to Tuesday's closing values of 140.79, 115.80 and 92.83, respectively. The next possible downside target for the yen lies around 103.00 against the greenback, 142.00 against the euro, 117.00 against the franc and 94.00 against the loonie.

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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Technical analysis of GBP/USD for April 16, 2014





British inflation fell to its lowest in over four years in March, easing pressure on living standards and raising the prospect that prices may now be rising less than wages for the first time in years. Tuesday's data showed that consumer price inflation dropped to 1.6 percent in March from February's 1.7 percent - the lowest level since October 2009, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Wage numbers are due today, they are forecast to show average earnings growth picking up to 1.8 percent from 1.4 percent - which if true, would be the first time that wages have outpaced inflation since April 2010. British wages typically rose by around 4-5 percent a year before the financial crisis, but since mid-2008 have mostly risen by less than inflation.
The pair has been in a down trend from 1.6820 levels. The pair is taking support at 1.67 levels and facing resistance at 1.6750. Currently, it is trading between 1.67-1.6750 levels. Break out either side will give a room to further levels. If the pair breaks the upper band at 1.6750, it will fly up to 1.6787 and 1.6820. On the down side the pair has support at 1.67, 1.666 and 1.6640. The level at 1.6640 is very crucial for bulls, if it breaks, it will breaks 1.6570 and 1.6550.



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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Australia New Motor Vehicle Sales Dip 0.3%




The total number of new motor vehicle sales in Australia was down a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent on month in March, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday, coming in at 92,168.
That follows the 0.1 percent increase in February.
By category, sales of passenger and other vehicles decreased 3.2 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively, while sales of sports utility vehicles climbed 4.9 percent.
By region, the Northern Territory recorded the largest percentage decrease (3.0 percent) followed by Tasmania (2.7 percent) and the Australian Capital Territory (2.1 percent).
On a yearly basis, new car sales were down 2.8 percent after falling 3.5 percent in the previous month.



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[InstaForex Gertrude]

NZ Dollar Drops Against Majors




Reversing direction, the New Zealand dollar slipped against other major currencies in Asian deals on Monday.
The kiwi fell to 0.8557 against the greenback, its lowest since April 4. This may be compared to an early 4-day high of 0.8600.
Pulling away from an early 4-day high of 1.6056 against the euro, the kiwi slipped to near a 3-week low of 1.6133.
The kiwi has come off from an early high of 1.0849 against the aussie, declining to a 4-day low of 1.0891.
The kiwi fell back slightly against the yen and was trading around 87.87, compared to an early 4-day high of 88.13.
If the kiwi extends decline, it is likely to seek downside target around 0.85 against the greenback, 1.62 against the euro, 1.095 against the aussie and 87.00 against the yen.



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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Australia Leading Index Rises 0.3% In February - Conference Board




A leading economic index for Australia was up 0.3 percent on month in February, the Conference Board said on Tuesday - rising for the 17th consecutive month.
That follows the 0.2 percent gain in January.
The coincident index climbed 0.4 percent in February following the 0.2 percent increase in the previous month.



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[InstaForex Gertrude]

China Leading Economic Index +1.2% In March




China's leading economic index was up 1.2 percent on month in March, the Conference Board said on Thursday. That's up from the 0.9 percent increase in February and the 0.3 percent gain in January. The coincident index added 1.1 percent in March - up from the flat reading in February and the 1.3 percent decline in January.


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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Japan Retail Sales Spike 11.0% On Year In March

Retail sales in Japan surged 11.0 percent on year in March, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said on Monday, worth 13.731 trillion yen.
That was in line with forecasts following the 3.6 percent gain in February.
Sales from large retailers surged an annual 16.1 percent - topping expectations for 13.8 percent following the 1.3 percent increase in the previous month.
On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, retail sales climbed 6.3 percent - beating forecasts for 6.0 percent and up sharply from 0.3 percent a month prior.

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[InstaForex Gertrude]

South Korea Current Account Surplus $7.35 Billion


South Korea saw an unadjusted current account surplus of $7.35 billion in March, the Bank of Korea said on Tuesday.That's up from the $4.52 billion surplus on February and the $3.61 billion surplus in January.
The financial account recorded a net outflow of 5.78 billion dollars, down from 6.92 billion dollars the previous month.
Seasonally adjusted, the current account surplus was $6.65 billion - down from $7.57 billion in February.

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[InstaForex Gertrude]

Yen Advances Against Majors




The Japanese yen climbed against other major currencies in early Asian deals on Wednesday.
The yen rose to 172.39 against the pound, 115.96 against the franc, 102.49 against the greenback and 93.59 against the loonie.
The yen climbed to a 2-day high of 141.52 versus the euro, compared to yesterday's closing quote of 141.59.
If the yen extends gain, it is likely to face resistance around 101.00 against the greenback, 115.00 against the franc, 140.00 against the euro, 171.5 against the pound and 92.00 against the loonie.



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[InstaForex Gertrude]

China Manufacturing PMI 48.1 In April - HSBC




China's manufacturing sector continued to contract in April, the latest survey from HSBC and Markit Economics revealed on Monday - with a final purchasing managers' index score of 48.1.
That was down from last month's flash estimate of 48.3, although it was up from the final March reading of 48.0.
A reading above 50 signals expansion in a sector, while a score below means contraction.
In all, the index shows that China's manufacturing sector has been in contraction for four straight months.
Among the individual components of the survey, output and new orders contract at slower rates, while staff numbers were cut for the sixth month in a row. There was also a solid reduction in both input and output prices.


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