- US Treasury Secretary Bessent said the yen has substantially overshot equilibrium and the US views excess yen volatility as unhealthy, while he added that the yen is very undervalued and that Japan may have intervened in currency markets on Thursday.
- Nikkei sources said Japan's government and BoJ intervened in the FX market yesterday by buying yen and selling dollars, while desks conducted rate checks.
- BoJ kept rates unchanged at 1.00%, as expected, through an 8-1 vote, with board member Takata the dissenter who proposed a 25bps rate hike; little move in Japanese assets on the announcement.
- After-hours US earnings saw Amazon (AMZN) rise almost 10% whilst Apple (AAPL) fell over 6%.
- APAC stocks were mostly higher following the tech-inspired momentum stateside; European equity futures indicate a positive cash market open with Euro Stoxx 50 futures up 0.8%.
- Looking ahead, highlights include French/Italian/EU Inflation Flash (Jul), German Unemployment Rate (Jul), Canadian GDP (May), US University of Michigan Final (Jul). Speakers include BoJ Governor Ueda, BoE's Pill, Fed's Hammack, Logan & Kashkari. Earnings from AbbVie, Chevron, Credit Agricole & NatWest, Scope Ratings update on Switzerland rating.