17 / 61
Insight Perspectives
16
In the foreign exchange market, the British pound was
the biggest loser falling nearly 4.8% against the euro. In
return, the Japanese yen rose 2.2% against the US
dollar; this trend may continue in the first half of 2016
as the Bank of Japan appears to have second thoughts
about more monetary easing – read more in the
Japan section .In December, the decline in the Brazilian real
continued after the country’s
sovereign credit rating was downgraded by Fitch .In December, the Chinese yuan fell 1.4% against the US
dollar in spite of a recovering euro. In Beijing, it appears
as if policymakers are making leeway for more yuan
depreciation in 2016; this is the case after the Chinese
central bank said that it focuses predominantly on the
trade-weighted exchange rate index. This is of special
interest, as this index has increased sharply in the last
five years – read more in th
e China section . Front page – Table of Contents