The US Dollar edged higher versus the Japanese Yen during early trade in London as investors from Japan rush to cover a shortage in the greenback ahead of Japan's fiscal year end. Analysts say that dollar sentiment remains fragile, however, as the news of the Coronavirus continues to reveal a steadily worsening crisis. In Asia, the Chinese Yuan was steady after a surprising PMI report showed a return to growth in the manufacturing sector there for the month of March; investors are still uncertain given that so many Chinese businesses are struggling to overcome the disruptions related to the viral spread. In the UK, the Pound Sterling came under pressure against both the Euro and the greenback as the debt downgrade continues to impact sentiment.
As of 11:07 am in London, the USD/JPY was trading at 108.4710 Yen, a gain of 0.59%; the pair has ranged from a trough of 107.713 Yen to a high of 108.739 Yen in today's session. The GBP/USD was lower at $1.2344, a loss of 0.2811% and off the session trough of $1.22406. The EUR/GBP was down and trading at 0.8887 Pence, a loss of 0.332%; in today's trading day, the pair has ranged from a low of 0.88790 Pence to a high of 0.89759 Pence.
Fundamental Events in Brief
In China, the NBS Manufacturing PMI for March came in with a reading of 52, well above the 45 that analysts had predicted; the previous reading was 35.7. The Caixin Manufacturing survey is due out tomorrow, and analysts have predicted a rise to 46 from 40.3. The survey for the non-manufacturing sector was also surprisingly upbeat at 52.3 against an expected 37.8. In the Eurozone, Eurostat reported that March CPI was at 0.7% (year-over-year) against a predicted 0.8%. Also the preliminary core inflation reading for March was at 1% on a year-over-year basis, below the 1.2% that had been predicted. In Germany, the unemployment rate was flat at 5%, though analysts had predicted a slight rise to 5.1%.