- USDTHB: moving in the range 36.305-36.385 this morning supportive level at 36.15 resistance level at 36.45
· SET Index: 1,372.5 (-0.62%), 25 Mar 2024
· S&P 500 Index: 5,218.2 (-0.31%), 25 Mar 2024
· Thai 10-year government bond yield (interpolated): 2.55 (-0.52 bps), 25 Mar 2024
· US 10-year treasury yield: 4.25 (+3.00 bps), 25 Mar 2024
- US new home sales fall; median price lowest in more than 2-1/2 years
- Japan's corporate service inflation steady in February
- Singapore Feb core inflation accelerates to 7-month high amid Lunar New Year
- Yen steady after intervention warning, dollar dips
US new home sales fall; median price lowest in more than 2-1/2 years Sales of new U.S. single-family homes unexpectedly fell in February after mortgage rates increased during the month, but the underlying trend remained strong amid a chronic shortage of previously owned houses on the market. The report from the Commerce Department on Monday also showed the median new house price last month was the lowest in more than 2-1/2 years, while supply was the highest since November 2022. New home sales slipped 0.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 662,000 units last month, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said. The sales pace for January was revised up to 664,000 units from the previously reported 661,000 units. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new home sales, which account for 13.1% of U.S. home sales, would rise to a rate of 675,000 units. New home sales are counted at the signing of a contract, making them a leading indicator of the housing market.
Japan's corporate service inflation steady in February Japan's annual business-to-business service inflation held steady at 2.1% in February, suggesting companies continued to pass on rising labor costs thanks to prospects for sustained wage gains. The year-on-year rise in the services producer price index, which measures what companies charge each other for services, was unchanged from January, Bank of Japan (BOJ) data showed. The data underscores the BOJ's view that rising service prices will start to replace cost-push inflation as a key driver of price gains and help sustain inflation around its 2% target. Service price moves are closely watched by the BOJ as a key indicator of whether wages and inflation are rising in tandem, which it set as one of the prerequisites for raising interest rates.
Singapore Feb core inflation accelerates to 7-month high amid Lunar New Year Singapore's February core inflation accelerated to its fastest pace in seven months, official data showed on Monday, as seasonal effects from the Lunar New Year drove services and food prices higher. The core inflation rate, which excludes private road transport and accommodation costs, came in 3.6% in February from a year earlier, faster than the 3.4% forecast by a Reuters poll of economists and the 3.1% seen in January. The February figure was the highest since the 3.8% in July 2023 according to LSEG data. Headline consumer prices in February were up 3.4% from the same month last year, stronger than the 3.3% forecast in the poll and the 2.9% rise in January.
Yen steady after intervention warning, dollar dips The 10-year government bond yield (interpolated) on the previous trading day was 2.55, -0.52 bps. The benchmark government bond yield (LB31DA) was 2.555, +0.50 bps. Meantime, the latest closed US 10-year bond yields was 4.25, +3.00 bps. USDTHB on the previous trading day closed around 36.34. Moving in a range of 36.26-36.37 this morning. USDTHB could be closed between 36.15-36.40 today. The yen was little changed on Monday, giving up earlier gains after Japan’s top currency diplomat warned against speculators trying to weaken the currency, while the dollar index fell from a one-month high reached. Masato Kanda, Japan's vice finance minister for international affairs, said that weakness in the Japanese currency did not reflect fundamentals, in the latest warning about the currency's "big slide" against the dollar. The yen was unable to hold gains for long, however. The dollar was last up 0.03% on the day at 151.47 yen, just below a four-month high of 151.86 reached on Friday. The Japanese currency is trading near its lowest levels in three decades, having reached 151.94 per dollar in October 2022, which was then its weakest level in 32 years. Traders are watching the level around 152 for signs of possible intervention.
Sources : ttb analytics , Bloomberg, CNBC, Trading economics, Investing, CEIC
