Local Data Struggling To Move The Needle

The greenback is holding its declines from Thursday so far in Asia, local data not doing much to move the needly early on in the session with a lack of headline flow evident so far.

• AUD is marginally higher, last at 0.7772. Data earlier in the session showed IHS Markit February flash PMI headline figure drop to a four month low of 54.4 from 55.9 in Jan. Preliminary January retail sales rose 2.0% against a 0.6% increase in December. All states and territories saw increases in January, except Queensland which fell 1.5% as a three day lockdown impacted trade.
• NZD is trading with minor losses, last at 0.7216. Data showed the January activity index rose 0.8% Y/Y, but the statement from the treasury accompanying the release said growth is slower than in the previous months due to contradicting signals from the constituent indicators and activity could be starting to plateau.
• JPY pairs broadly flat, data earlier in the session showed CPI fell 0.6% Y/Y in January, slightly better than estimates. Core prices fell 0.6%, in line with estimates. The declines are attributed to a resurgence in coronavirus cases which forced the government to suspend a tourism discount programme. Japan PMI rose, manufacturing rose above 50 and is back in expansionary territory. The BoJ kept rinban ops unchanged.
• The PBOC fixed USD/CNY at 6.4524 , 32 pips below sell side estimates and only the ninth lower miss of 2021 so far. A piece in CSJ stated that the PBOC will seek to maintain neutral liquidity and that policy remains neutral, signs of the PBOC pushing back against assumptions of policy tightening.