SGD Ends Five-Day Streak, Poll Shows Inflation Aid Package Deemed Insufficient

USD/SGD snapped a five-day losing streak on Wednesday. The pair last deals at SGD1.3931, down 5 pips on the day, with bears now looking for a sell-off past a congestion of intraday lows located around the 38.2% retracement of the YtD rally (SGD1.3834). Bulls need a rebound above SGD1.4097, which capped gains on Jul 13 & 14, to confirm that the broader uptrend remains intact.

• The Singdollar has been one of the best performers in emerging Asia this week, second only to the Korean won. The release of expectation-beating non-oil domestic exports earlier this week may have helped keep the currency afloat.
• On a year-to-date basis, the SGD has registered the mildest losses out of all regional currencies except the HKD, which is pegged to the greenback and is only allowed to move within a pre-determined range.
• A series of out-of-cycle rounds of policy tightening by the Monetary Authority of Singapore has shielded the local currency against greater losses. The latest move was announced last week, with the next regular policy review slated for October.
• In its annual report released Tuesday, the MAS said that it sees inflation easing only next year and flagged the risk of current price pressures becoming entrenched in the economy, which suggests the authorities remain on high alert.
• Singapore's citizens are also feeling the impact of inflation. A YouGov poll showed that more than 85% of them thought the government's latest aid package is not sufficient.
• The next batch of consumer price inflation will be published on Monday.