Euro:
1. ECB Governing Council member Nagel: Euro stablecoins could facilitate cheap cross-border payments.
Pound Sterling:
1. UK unemployment rises to its highest level in five years, wage growth slows, and traders have fully priced in expectations of two Bank of England rate cuts this year, with the probability of a 25 basis point cut in March rising to 73%.
Yen:
1. Former Bank of Japan policy board member: The Bank of Japan may raise interest rates in April.
2. Japan's Ministry of Finance forecasts that, due to rising debt financing costs, Japan's bond issuance in fiscal year 2029 may reach 38 trillion yen, a 28% increase from fiscal year 2026.
Other:
1. Reuters poll: 27 out of 29 economists said that Central Bank Indonesia will keep its 7-day reverse repo rate unchanged at 4.75% on February 19. Central Bank Indonesia will lower its 7-day reverse repo rate by 25 basis points to 4.50% in the second quarter of 2026 (compared to 4.25% in the January survey). 2. Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) meeting minutes: Considered keeping interest rates unchanged, but believed the case for a rate hike was stronger. Despite a stronger Australian dollar, concerns remain that financial conditions are no longer constraining.
3. Bank of America's February fund manager survey: Artificial intelligence bubble is the primary tail risk; going long on gold is the most crowded trade; private lending is the most likely to trigger credit events.
