Banks earnings / U.S CPI 'in line' / BoJ to lower forecasts / Geopolitical tensions in ME / Taiwan election

Taiwan is holding its presidential election on Saturday, a race that China has called a choice between war and peace
Yesterday's US CPI has the potential to signal an end to the consolidative phase, key is core inflation which is still 3.9% (headline up slightly 3.4%), freight and crude oil prices in focus with geopolitical tensions in ME >>> Focus next week shift to the real economy with retail sales, industrial output, and housing starts, bonds rallied post CPI on perception this data perhaps an outlier
The FED (and other CB's) wants all of us to know that inflation is going down and the fight against inflation is done...because the reality is that economies cannot live/endure this level of financing cost for long, particularly governments spending, and this crushing of vol/liquidity adds from CB's kind of blocks out the horrors and the risks in the rest of the world
Møller-Maersk chief warns Red Sea shipping disruption may last for months
U.S. and China keep a close watch as Taiwan heads to the polls
WEF 2024 starts on Monday
Hertz to sell off one-third of its EVs, replace with gas cars, driven by higher costs and soft demand
FED's commercial bank credit card rates have jumped to 21.5%, highest in history
Brexit: New report suggests UK £311bn worse off by 2035 due to leaving EU
PBOC may cut policy rate further in coming weeks, pro-growth policies to lead to investment-led rebound in 2024 - Citi
White House says U.S. Ukraine assistance has ‘ground to a halt’; Zelenskyy says ‘global freedom’ is at stake
BoJ considering lowering forecasts for growth, inflation >>> chances of a change in YCC diminishing, JPY softer helping Nikkei

Markets :

JGB 2year yields back to a big fat ZERO
UK rates market now has 135bps of rate cuts price in by end of 2024
Crude, NatGas prices and metals higher on ME tensions, typical shor-term reaction
Equity prices under slight pressure ahead of weekend (geopolitical risk) and ever so slightly firmer U.S core inflation, SPX4800 Jan 2022 top + valuations stretched
FXland : Not a whole lot to add, markets positioned short USD, any further signs of short-covering would come from USDJPY, particularly with BoJ lowering expectations and/or on a decent risk off move. EURCHF (chart) maybe be starting to correct higher #CHF - generally less corporate hedging earlier in year & one would imagine many hedgers not particularly interested to lock in a rate on all time highs CHF levels..
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