Won Leads Gains In Mixed Trade

Offshore drivers remained in focus, with the space digesting comments from Fed Chair Powell, who backed a more measured 25bp rate rise at the March FOMC meeting, while he noted that he was open to deploying 50bp rate hikes moving forwards, if inflation doesn’t cool. Elsewhere, Russian invasion of Ukraine intensified, pouring more fuel on commodity prices.

• CNH: Spot USD/CNH held a narrow range, shrugging off a slight miss in Caixin Services PMI (actual outturn of 50.2 vs. median est. of 50.7). The PBOC showed modest weak bias in their daily fixing of the yuan reference rate, with the mid-point of permitted USD/CNY trading band set 19 pips above expectations.
• KRW: Spot USD/KRW extended its pullback from a cycle high of KRW1,208.30 printed on Monday. The rate eased off in sync with a fall in U.S. Tsy yields.
• MYR: Spot USD/MYR slipped amid little in the way of notable domestic headline flow. Bank Negara Malaysia will announce their monetary policy decision later today.
• PHP: Spot USD/PHP edged higher, approaching key resistance from PHP51.500.
• THB: Spot USD/THB retreated despite concerns about the impact of fallout from the Russo-Ukrainian war. The government insisted that the nation can weather resultant volatility.
• Indonesian markets were shut in observance of a public holiday.