020 7898 0500Elsewhere, the Japanese yen had a mixed week. The Asian currency had a difficult start to the week due to a couple of factors. Firstly, we saw weaker-than-forecast quarterly growth figures released on Monday, suggesting the Bank of Japan might be forced to up its quantitative easing over the coming months. Secondly, we saw a rise in Japanese stock prices, which tends to go hand in hand with demand falling for the low-risk currency, hence pushing down the value. However, yesterday we saw world stock markets lose confidence, with Japanese stocks dropping by 2%. This eradicated earlier yen weakness and fanned demand for the currency. The commodity-backed New Zealand, Australian, and Canadian dollars had a generally good week as a positive economic report out of Europe gave a boost to the export-reliant nations. With the Canadian dollar being pegged back slightly yesterday, the New Zealand dollar was the stand-out performer, as the news from Europe was combined with strong retail and manufacturing data out of the island nation. Last night we had a statement from the governor of the Bank of Australia, and this afternoon we have influential manufacturing data out of Canada. Get in touch with your trader now for a live rate on your required currency.
