CHF & JPY sit atop the G10 FX table. This.....>

FOREX: CHF & JPY sit atop the G10 FX table. This comes after the JPY

underperformed Wednesday, on the back of a huge rally in U.S. equities (albeit

after a tumultuous Christmas Eve for stocks), as the Dow added over 1,000 points

for the first time in history. The JPY has paid more attention to the negative

overnight session for U.S. index futures, as opposed to the 3.00%+ gain for the

Nikkei 225 at writing. AUD, NZD & CAD have struggled to garner a bid in Asian

hours, underperforming as a result, with the EUR & GBP lodging nominal gains

against the greenback.

- It has been a headline-light session. Focus remains on the ongoing gov't

shutdown. On Weds WH econ advisor Hassett stressed that Fed Chair Powell & Tsy

Sec Mnuchin's jobs are fully secure, with the WSJ reporting that Powell "has

told WH off'ls he is open to their suggestion that he meet directly with Trump."

- The econ docket remains somewhat limited Thurs, with desks still depleted on

the back of the Christmas holiday season. Focus on U.S. data with weekly jobless

claims, cons confidence & FHFA house price data due. N.B. the release of new

home sales data scheduled for Thurs is delayed, owing to the gov't shutdown.