Breaking News
Investing Pro 0
Last Call for Cyber Monday! Save Now on Claim 60% OFF

Chinese yuan sinks on mixed GDP, Asia FX rattled by recession fears

Published Jan 16, 2023 11:07PM ET Updated Jan 16, 2023 11:21PM ET
Saved. See Saved Items.
This article has already been saved in your Saved Items
 
© Reuters.
 
USD/CNY
-0.03%
Add to/Remove from Watchlist
Add to Watchlist
Add Position

Position added successfully to:

Please name your holdings portfolio
 
DX
+0.04%
Add to/Remove from Watchlist
Add to Watchlist
Add Position

Position added successfully to:

Please name your holdings portfolio
 
DXY
+0.02%
Add to/Remove from Watchlist
Add to Watchlist
Add Position

Position added successfully to:

Please name your holdings portfolio
 
USD/JPY
-0.02%
Add to/Remove from Watchlist
Add to Watchlist
Add Position

Position added successfully to:

Please name your holdings portfolio
 
USD/SGD
+0.13%
Add to/Remove from Watchlist
Add to Watchlist
Add Position

Position added successfully to:

Please name your holdings portfolio
 
USD/INR
+0.13%
Add to/Remove from Watchlist
Add to Watchlist
Add Position

Position added successfully to:

Please name your holdings portfolio
 

By Ambar Warrick

Investing.com -- Most Asian currencies fell on Tuesday amid renewed fears of a global recession this year, with the yuan among the worst performers as data showed Chinese economic growth was pummeled by COVID lockdowns in 2022.

The yuan fell 0.4% to 6.7611, coming off a near five-month high after data showed that the Chinese economy grew at a substantially slower pace in 2022 than the prior year. The trend was driven largely by on-and-off anti-COVID lockdowns.

But the economy grew at a better-than-expected pace during the fourth quarter, with industrial production and retail sales data for December also beating expectations as the country began pivoting away from its strict zero-COVID policy.

While the relaxing of anti-COVID measures is expected to eventually spur a Chinese economic recovery this year, the mixed GDP data and surging COVID-19 cases have cast doubts over the timing of such a recovery.

Broader Asian currencies retreated as fears of a global recession were heightened by a World Economic Forum survey that showed that two-thirds of the economists polled expected a recession this year. A separate survey of business heads by PricewaterhouseCoopers also posited a glum outlook for the economy this year.

The Indonesian rupiah was the worst performer in Asia, losing 0.7%, while the Indian rupee and Philippine peso lost 0.3% and 0.4%, respectively. The rupee was also hit by data showing India logged weaker-than-expected wholesale inflation in December, as well as a widening trade deficit.

The dollar index and dollar index futures recovered slightly from a seven-month low, catching some safe haven bids.

A global recession bodes poorly for Asian currencies, given that they usually benefit from a risk-on environment that ensures steady capital flows to the region. Headwinds in major economies could also spill over into Asia, further denting local growth and currencies.

The Japanese yen fell 0.2%, but hovered just below a seven-month low as markets positioned for more hawkish cues from the Bank of Japan later this week.

The central bank is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged at record lows on Wednesday. But any potential changes to its yield curve control are in focus after the bank unexpectedly altered the mechanism in December.

The Singapore dollar fell 0.1% after data showed that the country’s key non-oil exports shrank much more than expected in December, highlighting more near-term headwinds for the Asian financial hub.

Chinese yuan sinks on mixed GDP, Asia FX rattled by recession fears
 

Related Articles

Add a Comment

Comment Guidelines

We encourage you to use comments to engage with other users, share your perspective and ask questions of authors and each other. However, in order to maintain the high level of discourse we’ve all come to value and expect, please keep the following criteria in mind:  

  •            Enrich the conversation, don’t trash it.

  •           Stay focused and on track. Only post material that’s relevant to the topic being discussed. 

  •           Be respectful. Even negative opinions can be framed positively and diplomatically. Avoid profanity, slander or personal attacks directed at an author or another user. Racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination will not be tolerated.

  • Use standard writing style. Include punctuation and upper and lower cases. Comments that are written in all caps and contain excessive use of symbols will be removed.
  • NOTE: Spam and/or promotional messages and comments containing links will be removed. Phone numbers, email addresses, links to personal or business websites, Skype/Telegram/WhatsApp etc. addresses (including links to groups) will also be removed; self-promotional material or business-related solicitations or PR (ie, contact me for signals/advice etc.), and/or any other comment that contains personal contact specifcs or advertising will be removed as well. In addition, any of the above-mentioned violations may result in suspension of your account.
  • Doxxing. We do not allow any sharing of private or personal contact or other information about any individual or organization. This will result in immediate suspension of the commentor and his or her account.
  • Don’t monopolize the conversation. We appreciate passion and conviction, but we also strongly believe in giving everyone a chance to air their point of view. Therefore, in addition to civil interaction, we expect commenters to offer their opinions succinctly and thoughtfully, but not so repeatedly that others are annoyed or offended. If we receive complaints about individuals who take over a thread or forum, we reserve the right to ban them from the site, without recourse.
  • Only English comments will be allowed.
  • Any comment you publish, together with your investing.com profile, will be public on investing.com and may be indexed and available through third party search engines, such as Google.

Perpetrators of spam or abuse will be deleted from the site and prohibited from future registration at Investing.com’s discretion.

Write your thoughts here
 
Are you sure you want to delete this chart?
 
Post
Post also to:
 
Replace the attached chart with a new chart ?
1000
Your ability to comment is currently suspended due to negative user reports. Your status will be reviewed by our moderators.
Please wait a minute before you try to comment again.
Thanks for your comment. Please note that all comments are pending until approved by our moderators. It may therefore take some time before it appears on our website.
Comments (2)
Ac Tektrader
Ac Tektrader Jan 17, 2023 3:33AM ET
Saved. See Saved Items.
This comment has already been saved in your Saved Items
fear can be measured relative to market risk....
Steven ML
Steven ML Jan 17, 2023 1:33AM ET
Saved. See Saved Items.
This comment has already been saved in your Saved Items
Fear cannot be measured, it will always hover over the market, be present in people's minds and be used in financial articles
 
Are you sure you want to delete this chart?
 
Post
 
Replace the attached chart with a new chart ?
1000
Your ability to comment is currently suspended due to negative user reports. Your status will be reviewed by our moderators.
Please wait a minute before you try to comment again.
Add Chart to Comment
Confirm Block

Are you sure you want to block %USER_NAME%?

By doing so, you and %USER_NAME% will not be able to see any of each other's Investing.com's posts.

%USER_NAME% was successfully added to your Block List

Since you’ve just unblocked this person, you must wait 48 hours before renewing the block.

Report this comment

I feel that this comment is:

Comment flagged

Thank You!

Your report has been sent to our moderators for review
Continue with Google
or
Sign up with Email