Overnight, dollar-yen reached an 8-day high but retreated after Bank of Japan Governor Ueda noted that Japan’s inflation is still below the 2% target and the low policy rate limits economic stimulus options.
Meanwhile, the pound weakened as UK employment dropped by 109,000 in May—the largest decline in 5 years—with wage growth slowing to 5.2%, signalling potential for Bank of England rate cuts.
The dollar strengthened overall, boosted by a strong U.S. NFIB small business optimism index surpassing expectations.
On the central bank front, ECB’s Holzmann dissented against a recent rate cut and suggested maintaining current rates through the summer to avoid reigniting inflation.
Attention now shifts to the Fed’s upcoming FOMC decision and a speech by the ECB’s Vujic. U.S. stock futures remain steady as U.S.–China trade talks continue, though market sentiment remains cautious due to a lack of concrete progress.
For the exact date and time of these major economic events, import the BlackBull Markets Economic Calendar to receive alerts directly in your email inbox.
