Lingering concerns over the second wave of....>

FOREX: Lingering concerns over the second wave of Covid-19 set the tone in Asia.

A new cluster of cases prompted Beijing to lock down some districts, Tokyo

reported a jump in new infections, while case count increases in some U.S.

states continued to accelerate. AUD led losses in the G10 basket, with commodity

FX space struggling. Escalating Sino-Australian tensions added pressure to the

Aussie, with a Global Times' article suggesting that China might restrict

Australian iron ore exports if their spat continue to deteriorate, although

that's not the "first option". Safe havens were bid, with JPY topping the pile.

- Geopolitics was also watched, as North Korea aggressively ratcheted up

tensions with the "enemy" in Seoul. USD/KRW attacked Friday's highs, boosted by

a flight to safety. Meanwhile, IDR gained vs. USD after a BI intervention.

- USD/CNH ebbed off earlier highs, but remained in positive territory. Spot

showed a muted reaction to Chinese economic activity data, which pointed to a

continued recovery, albeit for some indicators its pace was slower than exp.

- U.S. Empire M'fing, EZ trade balance, as well as comments from Fed's Daly &

Kaplan and Riksbank's Breman take focus from here.