Tight Asia Session, Kiwi Loses Shine After Jumping On RBNZ Remit Tweak

The Asia-Pac session didn't see much volatility, but saw NZD lose some ground after rallying in the U.S./Asia crossover. The upswing was a reaction to NZ FinMin's decision to double down on efforts to reign in house price inflation and amend the RBNZ's remit, forcing the MPC to consider "the impact on housing when making monetary and financial policy decisions." As regional players came in, the kiwi started the Asia-Pac session on a marginally firmer footing before faltering later in the day. Worth flagging that NZ$1.1bn of NZD/USD options with strikes at $0.7400 expire at today's NY cut, with the spot trading flat at $0.7434 as we type.

• JPY struggled from the off and Gotobi day flows may have played some role in the absence of market-moving headlines. USD/JPY accelerated gains into the Tokyo fix, but eased off after having a brief look above Wednesday's high.
• GBP outperformed at the margin, likely drawing continued support from familiar positives surrounding the UK's Covid-19 situation.
• The PBOC fixed its USD/CNY mid-point at CNY6.4522, broadly in line with sell side estimates.
• On the radar today: U.S. initial jobless claims, second GDP reading, flash durable goods, EZ & Italian confidence gauges as well as central bank speak from Fed's Williams, Quarles, Bullard, George & Bostic and ECB's de Guindos, Lane & de Cos.