JGBs remain mixed after December national core CPI disappoints investors, November IP improves

The Japanese government bonds remained narrowly mixed Friday after the country’s national consumer price inflation (CPI) data for the month of December disappointed market sentiments and industrial production for November improved from that in the previous month.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year JGB note, which moves inversely to its price, rose 1 basis point to 0.010 percent, the yield on the long-term 30-year note hovered around 0.700 percent while the yield on short-term 2-year slumped 17 basis points to -0.169 percent by 05:30GMT.

Data released by the Statistics Bureau showed that Japan’s core consumer price index (CPI), which includes oil products but excludes volatile fresh food costs, rose 0.7 percent in December from a year earlier, slowing from the previous month’s 0.9 percent gain. It also failed to meet a median market forecast for a 0.8 percent gain and was the slowest pace of increase in seven months, Reuters reported.

Further, the country’s industrial output in November fell 1.1 percent from the previous month and the seasonally adjusted index of production at factories and mines stood at 104.7 against the 2015 base of 100, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a preliminary report. The result followed a 2.9 percent gain in October.

Meanwhile, the Nikkei 225 index closed 1.29 percent higher at 20,666.10 by 05:35GMT, while at 05:00GMT, the FxWirePro's Hourly JPY Strength Index remained highly bearish at -118.43 (a reading above +75 indicates a bullish trend, while that below -75 a bearish trend). For more details, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex