Sherif Hasan / Profile

Latest Chinese lending data out from the PBOC 15 June 2016 yuan lending yy +14.4% vs +14.2% exp new yuan loans 985.5bln yuan vs 750bln exp fx deposits $658bln vs 666.8bln end-April outstanding total social financing up 12.6% yy end-May...

Details from the May 2016 UK labour market report 15 June 2016 Prior -2.4k. Revised to 6.4k. Apr ILO unemployment rate 5.0% vs 5.1% exp. Prior 5.1% Apr average weekly earnings 2.0% vs 1.7% exp 3m y/y. Prior 2.0% Ex-bonus 2.3% vs 2.1% exp 3m y/y. Prior 2.1%. Revised to 2.2...

Better than expected UK wages/jobs data sees GBP rally 15 June 2016 GBPUSD has been up to test the 1.4200-20 offers/res I highlighted but stalled at 1.4215 so far. Let's see if we get a second wave. Currently 1.4202. EURGBP had a look below 0.7900 again but has bids/support still lined up into 0...

Japan's Deputy chief cabinet secretary Seko: Desirable for UK to stay in EU Government closely watching markets including impact from UK referendum No comment on specific FX levels related to Brexit vote There are volatile moves in financial markets...

Just another day in Asia Japan: 20 year JGB to a record low yield, 0.145% 30 yr also, 0.215% 10 yr record low -0.185...

From CitiFX Strategy, comments on the CHF and the referendum Calling SNB Bluff: Limited Scope To Respond To CHF Strength Before The Referendum - Citi Absent the upcoming referendum, this week's policy meeting would probably pass a nonevent...

Westpac Consumer Confidence for June Down 1% on the month to 102.2 Last month it had a good sized jump, up 8.5% to 103.2 OK ... more info... The survey was conducted last week. You may recall I was on holiday last week, so my infectious enthusiasm and cheerfulness was absent from the internets...

Ya gotta love Japan. A black watermelon grown in Hokkaido sold for ¥500,000 It was the first auction for the year 260 Densuke watermelons were auctioned on Tuesday. Oh, that price was down from the all-time record of ¥650,000, set in 2008...

ADDED: Bloomberg reporting this poll result is Unconfirmed Bloomberg reporting. Nothing further at this stage. I checked out BMG's website and there is nothing further there either. It does appear that the poll was of people jumping out of airplanes though. So, that's good to...

Japan's Deputy chief cabinet secretary Seko: Desirable for UK to stay in EU Government closely watching markets including impact from UK referendum No comment on specific FX levels related to Brexit vote There are volatile moves in financial markets...

Via Bloomberg comes this on the Federal Reserve from Goldman Sachs GS expect the Fed to downgrade long-run target rate of its hiking cycle by 25 bps to 3% This would lead to a weaker USD It would be 3rd time since September of 2015 the Fed has cut its long-run target rate GS add that if, however...

Here's your data calendar for today 15 June No prizes for guessing the main event later but ahead of the FOMC we have a fairly busy data schedule to throw into the current heady mix. As always I wish you a good session. Times GMT...

The EU referendum looms ever larger ( in case you've been on Mars for the past 6 months) 15 June 2016 Much conjecture still on what the fall-out would be, both for the pound and the UK/EU/global political/financial landscape on a result either way...

The FOMC decision is at 2 pm ET (1800 GMT) on Wednesday The WSJ has 5 things to watch for at the Fed meeting. The assessment of the domestic economy will likely downgrade employment Brexit worries are likely to be address in the statement or press conference Sliding inflation expectations...

FOMC preview from Bank of America Merrill Lynch Between weaker May jobs data and uncertainty ahead of the UK referendum on EU membership, the markets have completely priced out any chance of a June rate hike...

GBP/JPY falls below 150.00 The consolidation phase in GBP/JPY appears to be over as the pair plunges another 190 pips today to the lowest since August 2013. The decline started late last year but the pair had been in a consolidation phase since February...

It is the confirmation or denial of a trend that determines whether an investor will sit tight today and hold his or her position or decide to enter or exit an issue that could be long or short the market...

Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen has gone on record saying that a British vote to leave the European Union (or, Brexit) would have consequences that will ripple through the global economy and financial markets...

Iran says oil exports at 2.31 million barrels per day but shipping data differs Reuters today reports that Iranian oil exports hit a four year high at 2.31 million barrels per day, citing unidentified people. That's up 100,000 bpd from May. Other sources differ wildly...

Business inventories were slightly below estimates Slow inventory building could see US Q1 GDP revised to +0.9%, according to JP Morgan. That's after a slightly downward revision to March inventories. They also added a downside bias to their Q2 GDP forecast of 2...