- USDTHB: moving in the range 35.89-35.96 this morning supportive level at 35.80 resistance level at 36.00
· SET Index: 1,393.6 (+0.90%), 21 Feb 2024
· S&P 500 Index: 4,981.8 (+0.13%), 21 Feb 2024
· Thai 10-year government bond yield (interpolated): 2.54 (-1.64 bps), 21 Feb 2024
· US 10-year treasury yield: 4.32 (+5.00 bps), 21 Feb 2024
- Fed worried about cutting rates too soon, minutes of January meeting show
- Japan manufacturing activity shrinks in Feb, services growth slows
- Japan sees 2.69 million visitors in January, matching 2019's record pace
- Dollar edges down as Fed meeting minutes meet expectations
Fed worried about cutting rates too soon, minutes of January meeting show The bulk of policymakers at the Federal Reserve's last meeting were concerned about the risks of cutting interest rates too soon, with broad uncertainty about how long borrowing costs should remain at their current level, according to the minutes of the Jan. 30-31 session. U.S. stocks were trading lower following the release of the minutes before recovering ground later in the session, while the U.S. dollar was little changed against a basket of currencies. U.S. Treasury yields rose. The minutes seemed to reinforce the recent message of Fed policymakers that they would be in no hurry to deliver on rate cuts that officials still expect to begin sometime this year. The minutes cited concerns among "some" Fed officials that progress on inflation could outright stall if the economy continues to perform as strongly as it has, while Fed staff suggested some weak points in an economy policymakers like to characterize as unnaturally resilient - with growth above potential and an historically low 3.7% unemployment rate.
Japan manufacturing activity shrinks in Feb, services growth slows Japanese manufacturing activity shrank more than expected in February, preliminary data showed on Thursday, while service sector activity grew at a slower pace as the broader economy remained under pressure from sticky inflation. The au Jibun Bank Flash Manufacturing output purchasing managers index (PMI) read 47.2 the first three weeks of February. The reading was weaker than expectations of 48.2, and also slowed further from the 48.0 seen in January. A reading below 50 indicates contraction, with Thursday’s reading marking Japan’s worst contraction in manufacturing activity in a year. The au Jibun Bank Flash Services PMI fell to 52.5 in February from 53.1 in the prior month, signaling a slower pace of growth.
Japan sees 2.69 million visitors in January, matching 2019's record pace Japan welcomed more than 2 million visitors for an eighth consecutive month in January, setting the stage for a potential record year for tourism. The number of foreign visitors for business and leisure was 2.69 million last month, down slightly from 2.73 million in December, data from the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) showed. Arrivals in December were an all-time high for that month and capped a pandemic recovery year that saw a little more than 25 million visitors enter the country. Tourism to Japan all but halted for more than two years during the COVID-19 pandemic. But the industry was dealt a major tailwind last year by rapid depreciation in the yen that made Japan a bargain compared to many destinations.
Dollar edges down as Fed meeting minutes meet expectations The 10-year government bond yield (interpolated) on the previous trading day was 2.54, -1.64 bps. The benchmark government bond yield (LB31DA) was 2.55, +0.00 bps. Meantime, the latest closed US 10-year bond yields was 4.32, +5.00 bps. USDTHB on the previous trading day closed around 36.01 Moving in a range of 35.89-35.96 this morning. USDTHB could be closed between 35.80-36.00 today. The dollar index edged lower on Wednesday after minutes from the Federal Reserve’s January meeting came in largely as expected and showed that the bulk of policymakers were concerned about the risks of cutting interest rates too soon. Traders have pushed back expectations on when the Fed will begin cutting rates to June as officials caution that they want to see more evidence that inflation will continue to decline. "Participants highlighted the uncertainty associated with how long a restrictive monetary policy stance would need to be maintained" to return inflation to the Fed's 2% target, said the meeting minutes.
Sources : ttb analytics , Bloomberg, CNBC, Trading economics, Investing, CEIC
