From Marc Chandler at Bannockburn Global Forex:
The most important development today is the yen’s weakness. The dollar has approached JPY158.90 in the European morning, a new high for the month. Despite a hawkish sounding record of last month’s Bank of Japan meeting, the swaps market shaved the risks of a rate hike at next month’s meeting. The market is challenging the resolve of Japanese and US officials. The greenback is more broadly narrowly mixed and the yen’s roughly 0.65% loss stands out. A record jump in Swedish industrial orders (32% month-over-month, seasonally adjusted), led by export orders for transport equipment is lifting the krona by about 0.25% to top the G10 leaders’ board.
The Middle East is the other major story. Iran and its allies continued to press. Tehran has demanded that US lift its naval blockade, withdraw forces, lift sanctions, release frozen assets, and pay reparations before the Strait of Hormuz will be allowed to open again. President Trump has suggested that the US may rely on the economic chokehold on Iran to pressure the regime and that the US was only “semi-negotiating” with Iran. This follows reports that the US has depleted much of its defense weapons, and the Saudi-Pakistan-Türkiye defense treaty struck last week. Oil prices are firm near four-day highs....
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