Futures Firm Overnight

JGB futures ticked higher in overnight trade, adding 15 ticks, reacting to Wednesday's curve flattening in the U.S. and local press reports suggesting that there will not be an imminent rollback of some of the regional states of emergency that are in play in Japan. Elsewhere, several press reports suggested that the BoJ's monetary policy review will note that the Bank has space to cut interest rates further into negative territory, if required. This message is not new, although there may be a slight tweak in the language employed which could be part of a balancing act as the BoJ looks set to promote broader flexibility re: monetary policy matters to elongate the sustainability of ultra-loose monetary conditions.