Analysis: Currencies

Germany pushes for 'two-speed' Europe with new bloc of six leading economies

Germany will push for a two-speed European Union to break decision-making inertia in the 27-member bloc and galvanise its economies, calling for a core group of member states to move ahead on key...

A crisis of confidence in the yen looms over Japan PM Takaichi's election gamble

The spectre of coordinated yen buying by Tokyo and Washington has propped up Japan's currency, but history suggests the impact of an actual intervention could be limited, especially because Prime...

Japan's services inflation steady, signals broadening wage pressure

A leading indicator of Japan's services sector prices rose 2.6% in December from a year earlier, data showed on Tuesday, backing up the central bank's view that labour shortages will continue to prod...

US core capital goods orders rise for fifth straight month, boosting economic outlook

New orders for key U.S.-manufactured capital goods increased more than expected in November, indicating business spending on equipment maintained a steady growth pace in the fourth quarter. ...

Currencies: Spotlight on the Japanese yen

After Donald Trump's remarks on Greenland helped equities regain altitude, investors are now focused on Japanese rates, which keep climbing even as the yen remains weak. This decoupling is unusual and...

Bank of Canada to keep rates on hold on Wednesday, future monetary policy to depend on US trade negotiations 

The Bank of Canada is widely expected to keep its policy interest rate on hold at 2.25% on Wednesday but economists and money markets are divided over where Canada's monetary policy cycle is headed...

Fed meeting likely to be overshadowed by threats to central bank's independence

The Federal Reserve is expected to hold interest rates steady this week at a meeting overshadowed by a Trump administration criminal investigation of U.S. central bank chief Jerome Powell, an evolving...

Carney likely to visit India in early March as Canada trade pivot intensifies, envoy says

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney will likely visit India the first week of March and sign deals on uranium, energy, minerals and artificial intelligence, Dinesh Patnaik, India's High Commissioner...

EU countries give final approval to Russian gas ban

European Union countries on Monday gave their final approval to ban Russian gas imports by late 2027, making their vow to cut ties with their former top supplier legally binding, nearly four years...

BOJ money market data suggests Japan did not intervene in currency market on Friday

Bank of Japan money market data on Monday indicated that a spike in the yen rate against the dollar on Friday was not likely the product of official Japanese intervention. The central...

US rate check masks stiff hurdle to coordinated yen intervention

The unusual rate check by the New York Federal Reserve that triggered a spike in the stubbornly weak yen has lowered the threshold for intervention, but coordinated Japan-U.S. selling of dollars still...

BOJ sees boost to inflation from weak yen becoming larger

A weak yen has an increasing impact on Japan's inflation as firms actively pass on rising costs, the central bank said on Monday, signalling its vigilance over mounting price pressures that may...

Japan says in close coordination with US on forex as yen intervention risks mount

Top Japanese authorities said on Monday they have been in close coordination with the United States on foreign exchange, but declined to confirm news reports of rate checks that drove the yen sharply...

Japan PM vows to act against speculative market moves after yen spike

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Sunday her government will take necessary steps against speculative market moves, in the wake of a yen spike that heightened traders' alert over the...

Supreme Court may leave big questions unresolved on Trump bid to fire Fed's Lisa Cook

U.S. Supreme Court justices appear reluctant to grant President Donald Trump's request to let him immediately remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. But their eventual ruling following this week's...

NY Fed carried out dollar/yen rate checks, source says

The New York Federal Reserve conducted rate checks on the dollar/yen pair around midday on Friday, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. Analysts say the move may have...

Yen volatile on rate check speculation, dollar set for sharp weekly drop

The yen was volatile on Friday, with a sudden spike raising market speculation that authorities had conducted a rate check, often a precursor to intervention, while the dollar was set for its steepest...

Euro zone business activity expands steadily but price pressures reemerge

Euro zone business activity growth held steady this month as a weaker expansion in the dominant services industry offset milder factory contraction, according to a survey, while price pressures picked...

BOJ keeps rates steady as expected, ups growth and inflation forecasts

The Bank of Japan kept interest rates steady on Friday and raised its economic and inflation forecasts, signalling its readiness to continue hiking still-low borrowing costs. As widely...