ForexLive Asia-Pacific FX news wrap: RBNZ to hold rates higher for longer, NZD rises

• Fitch affirms China A+ rating but lowers its outlook to negative
• China vehicle sales rose in March, bouncing back from February
• Big Federal Reserve day coming up – CPI, then Bowman, Barkin, Goolsbee, & March minutes
• NZD/USD trading higher after the RBNZ statement (TL;DR on rates is ‘higher for longer’)
• Reserve Bank of New Zealand leaves it cash rate at 5.5%, as widely expected
• BoJ Gov Ueda comments on challenges of prolonged deflation, low inflation
• ICYMI – What to watch in Japanese comments for USD/JPY selling intervention getting closer
• PBOC sets USD/ CNY central rate at 7.0959 (vs. estimate at 7.2300)
• BoJ Governor Ueda says won’t change monetary policy just to deal directly with FX moves
• “Putin and Xi’s Unholy Alliance”
• More from BOJ’s Ueda – wanted to move before trend inflation hit 2%
• PBOC is expected to set the USD/CNY reference rate at 7.2300 – Reuters estimate
• BoJ Ueda anticipates accommodative financial conditions will be maintained for time being
• Japan data: March PPI +0.2% m/m (expected +0.3%)
• US CPI data due Wednesday, the ranges of estimates (& why they’re crucial to know)
• Goldman Sachs on the largest selling of stocks by hedge funds in 3 months – short sales
• ICYMI from the SNB – vice chairman Schlegel on intervention
• ICYMI – Morgan Stanley raised its Brent crude oil price forecast as high as $94 (from $90)
• Forexlive Americas FX news wrap 9 Apr: The FX mkt has volatility ahead of key events
• Oil – private survey of inventory shows a headline crude oil build greater than expected
• US stocks recover from declines to close higher
• Trade ideas thread – Wednesday, 10 April, insightful charts, technical analysis, ideas

The
New Zealand dollar was an outperformer during the session, rising
towards 0.6075 on the back of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand April
monetary policy statement (officially this was a Monetary Policy
Review (MPR), not a Monetary Policy Statements (MPS). Review’s are
briefer that Statements). The Bank left its official Cash Rate
unchanged at 5.5% and wrapped up its statement with the hawkish:

• The
  Committee agreed that interest rates need to remain at a restrictive
  level for a sustained period to ensure annual consumer price
  inflation returns to the 1 to 3 percent target range.

Bolding
is mine.

Across
other major FX ranges were tight, with traders now awaiting the US
CPI report due at 8.30 am US Eastern time (1230 GMT).

We
had remarks from Bank of Japan Governor Ueda (see points above). Most
notably he said that the Bank of Japan will consider a policy change
if the weak yen causes inflation to overshoot. Japanese Government
Bond 10 year yield rose to its highest since March 15.

Fitch
(rating agency) revised its outlook on China to negative, while
affirming the country at ‘A+’ rating. In downgrading its outlook Fitch cited increasing risks to China’s public finance outlook (more in the bullet point above).

In
regional equities, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng performed well:

This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at www.forexlive.com.