Futures are off slightly after another overnight ramp job and an uneventful initial claims print.

Although VX and VIX have yet to commit to an equities outcome…

…CL and RB are back at nosebleed levels…

…and DXY is back above its SMA200 after bouncing off the bottom of its rising white channel.

Some have questioned why the BoJ isn’t trashing the yen as they often do to boost stocks.

It’s very straightforward: they can’t afford to.  They’ve needed a relatively strong yen to bring down inflation…

…which has driven interest rates to historically high levels – at least by Japan’s standards. When you have debt/GDP of over 230%, even 2.5% is a disaster.

 

The US debt/GDP is considerably lower, but at 125% is still problematic – especially with a $2 trillion annual deficit.

 

 

continuing…