It was a subdued sort of session with traders settling in to wait for Federal Reserve Chair Powell speaking Friday US time (previews in bullets above).

From New Zealand were retail sales data for Q2 that didn’t come in good, but they weren’t as bad as expected. These data have supported the NZD during the session.

A supported Dalian iron ore price provided a bit of a tailwind for the AUD, while a little bounce for oil has lent some bids to CAD.

All of the ranges have been small and those influences are open to being reversed ahead. There was little impetus to moves.

USD/JPY had a quiet session, its not a lot changed on the day.

The PBOC once again set the USD/CNY reference rate a lot lower than the modelled estimate to support the yuan.

Flash PMI data from Australia was poor, while Japan's was a little more mixed. The Japaneses service sector PMI improved.

Asian equity markets:

  • Japan’s Nikkei 225 +0.3%

  • China’s Shanghai Composite -0.6%

  • Hong Kong’s Hang Seng +0.3%

  • South Korea’s KOSPI -0.3%

  • Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 +0.7%

aud wrap chart dalian iron ore 23 August 2023