Daily Market Analysis By FXOpen

Bank of Japan Ends the Era of Negative Interest Rates


The Bank of Japan has not raised interest rates for 17 years. For 8 years, it was in the negative zone.

But today there was a dramatic shift in monetary policy — the Bank of Japan announced a decision to increase the interest rate from -0.1% to 0.1%.

The central bank also abandoned yield curve control (YCC), a policy that had been in place since 2016 and capped long-term interest rates near zero.

Considering the scale of the decisions taken, the reaction of the yen exchange rate relative to other currencies turned out to be moderate. This is because the plans of the Bank of Japan have been discussed for a long time, including in official sources of information. Therefore, it is acceptable to assume that participants in the currency markets have already laid down the probability of today's event.

In fact, the yen has weakened as a result, but this may only be an initial reaction in which markets are reassessing the impact of the Bank of Japan's decision over a range of short-term to long-term horizons.



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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

The Dollar Strengthens in Anticipation of the Fed's Rate Decision


The current five-day period is as full as possible with important fundamental data. This morning, a meeting of the Bank of Japan and the RBA took place. Tomorrow, the Fed will announce its decision on the rate, and on Thursday, market participants expect a verdict from the Bank of England. Decisions by officials may determine the pricing of major currency pairs in the coming months. After all, most currency pairs have been trading in narrow flat corridors for a long time, and an increase in volatility can lead to the start of new medium-term trends.

GBP/USD


A week ago, pound buyers managed to update the high of December last year at 1.2830. The price almost reached 1.2900, but the pound bulls failed to continue the upward movement and test the psychological resistance level at 1.3000. The pullback from 1.2900 contributed to the formation of a reversal combination for selling bearish harami on the w1 timeframe. Technical analysis of GBP/USD shows that if this formation continues, the price may decline to recent extremes at 1.2530-1.2500. We can consider cancelling the downward scenario if we confidently consolidate above 1.2900.

Tomorrow, pay attention to the release of data on the consumer price index in the UK for February. At 12:00 GMT+3, the housing price index for the past month will be released.

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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

A Yen For Volatility: US Dollar Surges as Japan Ends 8 Years of Negative Rates


Eight long years have passed since the Bank of Japan introduced its controversial yet pioneering attempt to encourage spending in what has become an ultra-conservative economy, which has experienced a sustained period of stagnation.

In 2016, Japan's central bankers decided to introduce negative interest rates, a term which refers to the maintaining of artificially low interest rates in order to encourage businesses and private individuals to borrow money and therefore spend, which would in turn increase the size of the Japanese economy and result in economic growth.

During that eight-year period, times have not been easy in Japan with regard to its national economic situation, and despite the country having not invoked any lockdowns or restrictions in the way that many Western nations did four years ago and a longstanding series of challenges faced the Japanese fiscal situation.

Over the course of time, Japan's demographics have changed, and it has the longest life expectancy in the world; therefore, a large proportion of retired people and a conservative younger generation have appeared to save money rather than spend or invest it.

Many analyses consider that the negative interest rate policy was invoked to encourage such people to withdraw their savings from bank accounts and either spend it or invest it in other areas, such as property or business ventures.

Just six months after the introduction of the policy in 2016, the Japanese economy had not grown, and in some reports there are opinions which state that Japan's authorities can now look back on 25 years of failed economic stimulus attempts.

That is a harsh criticism, however it appears that Japan's central bank has given up on the most recent one and in a landmark decision has today put an end to eight years of negative interest rates.

This means a return to standard market rates, and the result in the currency markets is noticeable.

The US dollar has made gains against the Japanese Yen during today's trading session, beginning with the Asian market.

The USDJPY pair is now trading at 150.424 Yen to the US Dollar, which puts it back at the high point it was at when March began.

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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

Market Analysis: EUR/USD Dips Again, USD/JPY Rallies Above 151


EUR/USD started another decline from the 1.0960 resistance. USD/JPY surged and broke the 151.00 resistance zone.

Important Takeaways for EUR/USD and USD/JPY Analysis Today

• The Euro started a fresh decline below the 1.0900 support zone.
• There is a key bearish trend line forming with resistance at 1.0870 on the hourly chart of EUR/USD at FXOpen.
• USD/JPY climbed higher above the 150.00 and 151.00 levels.
• There is a connecting bullish trend line forming with support at 150.20 on the hourly chart at FXOpen.

EUR/USD Technical Analysis


On the hourly chart of EUR/USD at FXOpen, the pair struggled to clear the 1.0960 resistance zone. The Euro started a fresh decline and traded below the 1.0900 support zone against the US Dollar.

The pair even declined below 1.0870 and tested the 1.0835 zone. A low was formed near 1.0834 and the pair is now correcting losses. On the upside, the pair is now facing resistance near the 50% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the 1.0906 swing high to the 1.0834 low at 1.0870.

There is also a key bearish trend line forming with resistance at 1.0870. The next key resistance is near the 76.4% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the 1.0906 swing high to the 1.0834 low at 1.0890.

The main resistance is 1.0905. A clear move above the 1.0905 level could send the pair toward the 1.0960 resistance. An upside break above 1.0960 could set the pace for another increase. In the stated case, the pair might rise toward 1.1020.

If not, the pair might resume its decline. The first major support on the EUR/USD chart is near 1.0835. The next key support is at 1.0820. If there is a downside break below 1.0820, the pair could drop toward 1.0785. The next support is near 1.0750, below which the pair could start a major decline.

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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

Correction in Crypto Markets: BTC/USD Rate Drops to $60,000


On March 18, we wrote that bears became more active near the $70,000 level.

As the BTC/USD chart shows, today the price of Bitcoin is already close to the psychological level of USD 60k, while the price of Ethereum is close to USD 3,000.

According to MarketWatch, experts consider the decline to be a correction that is “long overdue” as part of an upward trend. According to Fundstrat, Monday saw net outflows from BTC ETFs for the first time since March 1, amounting to about $154.3 million.

What's next?

From a technical analysis point of view, the price of Bitcoin, given an increase of approximately 90% from point A (around USD 38.8k) to point B (around USD 73.4k), a normal correction of 50% indicates the prospect of a decline to the area of USD 56.1k.



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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

TSLA analysis: Price Returns to Above the $170 Level, But for How Long?


After forming a low of the year on March 14, the TSLA share price managed to rise above the USD 170 level — investors reacted positively to Tesla’s decision to increase prices for electric vehicles in the US and Europe.

However, the TSLA stock market remains under pressure:
the TSLA price performs noticeably worse than the S&P 500 index;
the price forms a downward channel (shown in red);
Goldman Sachs analysts cut their forecast for Tesla shares to USD 190 from USD 220 for the next 12 months due to problems with production and sales.

Yahoo writes that investors are not happy with Musk's attitude. The fall in Tesla shares could quickly stop if the company gets a “real CEO” or Musk changes his position and returns to work and positively promoting the brand.

What is the market outlook?



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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

The price of the S&P 500 set a historical record amid news from the Fed


On March 14, we wrote: “The US500 stock index market is showing signs of positivity, indicating that an attempt to overcome the resistance of 5,200 points with a new record high may be made in the near future.” Yesterday's event created the momentum that allowed the bulls to do this.

On Wednesday evening it became known that it was decided to keep the interest rate at 5.5% in the US — this was expected. What market participants paid more attention to was the dovish tone of the Fed. Thus, it became known that by the end of 2024 there may be 3 consecutive rate cuts.

According to Jerome Powell:
→ recent inflation data turned out to be hotter than expected;
→ however, “in fact, the overall story has not changed, it is a gradual decline in inflation along a somewhat bumpy road.”

Thus, fears associated with a longer period of tight monetary policy have been dispelled. As a result, the US dollar fell in price against a number of currencies, and the US stock market index S&P 500 soared to a new historical high around the level of 5,250.



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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

USD/CHF Analysis: SNB Decision Breaks Multi-month Trend


According to Reuters, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, the head of the Swiss National Bank (SNB) Thomas Jordan told the Swiss press that the appreciation of the franc creates problems for exporters. Thus, indicating intentions to weaken the CHF.

His words in January seem to be in line with how events are developing — the franc has weakened against the US dollar by more than 6% since the start of the year.

Moreover, today, quite unexpectedly, the Swiss National Bank decided to lower the interest rate: actual = 1.50%, forecast = 1.75%, previous value = 1.75%.

The result of the decision today was a sharp weakening of the franc against other currencies, including the US dollar.



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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

The Yen and European Currencies Strengthen after the Fed Meeting


Yesterday's meeting of the US Federal Reserve disappointed dollar buyers. The rate remained at the same level as expected (5.25–5.50%). However, according to the updated FOMC forecast, it will be reduced three times this year by 0.25%, in contrast to four in the December forecast. The 2025 forecast also shows fewer expectations for rate cuts, just three. Naturally, investors' disappointment with this turn of events resulted in sales of the American currency in almost all directions. Thus, the US dollar/yen currency pair rebounded from recent highs at 151.80 and is currently trading below 151.00, the pound/US dollar retested 1.2800, and euro/US dollar buyers managed to strengthen the pair above 1.0900.

GBP/USD


Weak data on inflation and producer price index in the UK for February, published yesterday, led to the price falling below 1.2680, but by the evening, pound buyers managed to win back losses and test 1.2800. At the same time, today the pair faces an equally important day, rich in foundations.

A meeting of the Bank of England is scheduled at 15:00 GMT+3, at which a decision on the base interest rate will be made. Analysts assume that the rate will remain at the same level (5.25%). What is important for market participants will be the number of votes of committee members for a rate reduction this year. If the number of officials who believe that the rate should be reduced at the next BoE meetings is more than one, the pound/US dollar pair may decline to 1.2700-1.2600. Otherwise, the price growth on the GBP/USD chart may resume in the direction of 1.3000-1.2900.

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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

Market Analysis: AUD/USD and NZD/USD Signal More Losses


AUD/USD declined below the 0.6575 and 0.6550 support levels. NZD/USD is also moving lower and might trade below the 0.6000 zone.

Important Takeaways for AUD/USD and NZD/USD Analysis Today

• The Aussie Dollar started a fresh decline from well above the 0.6600 level against the US Dollar.
• There was a break below a connecting bullish trend line with support at 0.6570 on the hourly chart of AUD/USD at FXOpen.
• NZD/USD declined steadily from the 0.6105 resistance zone.
• There was a break below a key bullish trend line with support at 0.6040 on the hourly chart of NZD/USD at FXOpen.

AUD/USD Technical Analysis


On the hourly chart of AUD/USD at FXOpen, the pair struggled to clear the 0.6635 zone. The Aussie Dollar started a fresh decline below the 0.6600 support against the US Dollar.

The pair even settled below 0.6575 and the 50-hour simple moving average. There was a clear move below the 50% Fib retracement level of the upward move from the 0.6504 swing low to the 0.6634 high. Moreover, there was a break below a connecting bullish trend line with support at 0.6570.

The pair is now trading below the 76.4% Fib retracement level of the upward move from the 0.6504 swing low to the 0.6634 high. On the downside, initial support is near the 0.6520 zone.

The next support sits at 0.6505. If there is a downside break below 0.6505, the pair could extend its decline. The next support could be 0.6455. Any more losses might send the pair toward the 0.6420 support.

On the upside, an immediate resistance is near the 0.6550 level. The next major resistance is near 0.6575, above which the price could rise toward 0.6635. Any more gains might send the pair toward 0.6700.

A close above the 0.6700 level could start another steady increase in the near term. The next major resistance on the AUD/USD chart could be 0.6780.

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Disclaimer: This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only (excluding FXOpen EU). It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.