Mixed Session, Despite Higher Equities

Mixed session for USD/Asia pairs, despite a generally firmer equity tone in the region. USD/CNH range bound, while USD/TWD edges higher back above 30.00, as China military exercises kick off. USD/KRW also firmed. INR and IDR lost ground, while THB has rallied.

• CNH: USD/CNH has traded tight ranges today. Dips sub 6.7600 have been supported. The CNY fix printed in line with expectations. China equities are higher but lagging the rest of the Asia Pac region. The property sub-index continues to trend lower, now down for the 7th straight session. USD/CNH sits at 6.7615 currently.
• KRW: Firmer onshore equities haven't aided the won today. USD/KRW is back above 1310 in terms of the 1 month NDF, driving a further wedge with the recent equity bounce. Pelosi's trip to South Korea has been uneventful so far.
• TWD: Spot USD/TWD is back above 30.00, as onshore equities underperform the broader rally seen elsewhere in the region. The TWSE is off by a little over 0.8% so far today. China has commenced its military exercises around the Taiwan island.
• INR: USD/INR is up again in early trade today. The pair is back above 79.40, around +0.35% above yesterday's closing levels. This comes despite weakness in oil prices. Onshore equities are modestly higher in early trade.
• IDR: Spot USD/IDR has edged higher as well, up 17.5 figs to 14930. Indonesia's 5-year CDS premium has added 17bp his morning to last sit at 120bp. It keeps slowly retracing an earlier pullback from the Jul 15 peak of 164bp. Onshore equities are higher (+0.30%), although note there was a big outflow yesterday from offshore investors, -$479.9mn.
• PHP: The peso trades close to flat at 55.727. Wednesday saw the benchmark PSEi index cross above its 50-DMA for the first time since early March, while overseas investors were net buyers of local stocks for the second consecutive day. Reminder that Philippine inflation data will hit the wires tomorrow. It is expected that headline inflation stayed at +6.1% Y/Y in July, according to a Bloomberg survey.
• THB: Selling pressure has hit spot USD/THB, with overnight recovery in risk sentiment lending support to the Asia EM space. The pair last deals -0.10 at THB36.182. Thai officials continued to play up recovery prospects for the local tourism industry. Gov't spokesman said the authorities will roll out fresh supportive measures through 2023 to attract more overseas visitors.