Summary

• As widely expected, the Bank of Japan hiked its overnight rate to 1% and would stop tapering its bond purchase next April, stabilizing them around JPY2 trillion (~$12.5 bln) month.
• After the euro was marked up to around $1.1620 yesterday, the upside momentum yielded to consolidation.
• The US reports May import/export prices (export prices rising faster than import prices) and housing starts and permits (which are expected to have slipped).

Investors are still in the dark over the precise details of the memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran, but they apparently are sufficiently comfortable to take July WTI to a new two-month low, with August