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USD/SGD Up Slightly, But SGD On Track For Biggest Weekly Gain In 5 Weeks

SGD

Singapore Manpower Minister Teo has said that the employment situation in Singapore is stabilising, but added the government is mindful of risks to the employment industry. The comments come after labour market figures yesterday showed the unemployment rate rose to 4.7%, the third consecutive quarter of rises. Teo said while total employment contracted, 9 out of 10 were accounted for by the foreign workforce, while employment among residents actually rose.

  • SGD is unperturbed by the figures, and other data yesterday that showed an unexpected decline in non-oil exports for the second straight month. Some of the export decline is attributed to negative base effects.
  • USD/SGD last around 8 pips higher at 1.3268, pushed higher by the US dollar coming off its recent lows. The pair touched 1.3249 on Thursday – the lowest level since mid-2018.
  • There is a flurry of option activity in the pair with Bloomberg data showing option activity was 5x average yesterday. Among these new options are $880bn of USD puts/SGD calls between 1.2975 and 1.3000 with the majority rolling off in February 2021.

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