Synopsis:
Credit Agricole's month-end rebalancing model points to moderate USD selling, especially against the EUR, ahead of this month's FX fixing. A combined strategy recommends selling USD vs an equally-weighted G10 basket, despite some counter-signals from corporate flows.
Key Points:
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Rebalancing Model Bias:
The month-end portfolio rebalancing model suggests broad-based USD selling, with the strongest signal against EUR, driven by equity and asset performance patterns. -
Corporate Flow Divergence:
In contrast, the corporate flow model flags selling pressure in EUR and GBP, which could partly offset some of the rebalancing-driven demand for these currencies. -
Combined Strategy Approach:
The bank recommends combining the two models, ultimately resulting in a short USD position vs an equally weighted G10 currency basket to capture the broader rebalancing trend.
Conclusion:
Heading into this month’s fix, Credit Agricole’s models support tactical USD selling, particularly against the EUR, despite corporate flow caution. The net strategy remains moderately USD bearish near-term.