Forex Special - Asian equities stretched down on Thursday, primarily weighed by China's economic data. Investors refused to accept a newly report suggesting a 10.3% economic growth for Q2 as good enough, thus diminishing the faith placed in the country's ability to make progress at the super-fast pace expected.
On the other side of the world, minutes of the Fed's meeting reflected worries on the slowness of the economic recovery. The statement was accompanied by a fall in US retails sales for a second straight month. Investors opted to be out of trouble, and were mostly sidelined.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 slid the most after a 1.15% fall. In Australia, the ASX-200 declined 0.55%. The Shangai Composite retreated 0.15%. The Hang Seng edged down 0.28% while the Kospi reduced its value by 0.35%.
In the currency market, the Japanese Yen was the best performer overnight, advancing against its major rivals. USD/JPY sums up the Japanese currency superiority in the Asia trading, after the pair fell to 88.00 just to recover slightly up to 88.10. The pair trades 0.34% lower than yesterday's close.
In the Euro front, EUR/USD was indecisive to take a clear direction, provocking the price to return to its opening as the European session approaches. The pair is unchanged at 1.2741, after ranging between 1.2708 (intra-day low) and 1.2764 (intra-day high).
In reference to the British currency, GBP/USD eked out some pips to the upside, yet no real subtance on the overnight movements. The pair trades around 1.5270, a 0.05% rise from previous close. The highest intra-day level was reached at 1.5288, while an early retreat was contained at 1.5234 (intra-day low).
