Currency Focus

JPY - The output index continued to rise in November, hitting a new record. It points to relative firmness in production. Inventory in electronic parts and devices declined while production rose. So for now, the possibility of inventory piling up and curbing production as feared has not become a reality. Looking forward, the movements in the output data are expected to be basically flat. We cannot confirm at this moment that the economy is feeling the effects of a slowdown in overseas economies, but it could became apparent in the future.

AUD - Global economic growth, far from fading away is actually quite robust. The Australian dollar is a great proxy for stronger economic growth.

CAD - If the Canadian dollar gains are based on the fact that the U.S. economy isn't slowing as much as previously thought, then we could see these gains erased in fairly short order. On the other hand, if they're commodity based in terms of expectations for cold weather ahead or the thought that geopolitical tensions could see the price of oil go higher, then we could push even a little bit stronger.