US Data Sights Ahead, Dollar Begins to Lose Steam
The US dollar started the week on a weak note, while the Japanese yen actually strengthened on Monday (February 9). The market is holding back on taking large positions as the week is packed with important data—from employment reports to inflation—that could determine the Fed's next interest rate direction.
Update ahead of the US session (14:24 UTC / 21:24 WIB): The Dollar Index (DXY) is at 96.91, down -0.79%. Meanwhile, EUR/USD held at 1.1913 (+0.83%), while GBP/USD was at 1.3651 (-0.25%) as the pound was held back by domestic UK political issues.
The biggest focus remains on the yen. USD/JPY is hovering around 156.0 with a daily change of approximately -0.8%, as market speculation about potential Japanese intervention intensified following Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's landslide victory. Talk of a large fiscal stimulus briefly pressured the yen, but officials' comments about being "on standby" for intervention have given the yen a boost.
In Asia, the yuan was also relatively stable. USD/CNH was at 6.9163 (+0.04%), while AUD/USD was at 0.7057 (+0.38%)—the Aussie was still supported by the RBA's tighter interest rate sentiment, although the market remained sensitive to global risk sentiment.
Essentially, ahead of the US session, the FX market was playing it safe: the dollar weakened as "data week" was approaching, the yen strengthened due to intervention noise, and the euro also rose because the dollar was lacking steam. Once the jobs and CPI data are released, the major direction usually becomes apparent—it's still the warm-up phase.
Source: Newsmaker.id
