SECURITY: Finnish FM-Prep Underway But No Decisions Yet On Troops In Ukraine
Speaking at a meeting of Nordic 5 (N5) foreign ministers in Helsinki, Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen claims that the 'coalition of the willing' has begun preparations on the prospect of deploying peacekeeping troops to Ukraine in the event of a peace deal, but that no decisions have been made yet. Valtonen spoke alongside the foreign ministers of Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Sweden, as well as invited Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand.
- Valtonen adds that "We have not seen anything from Russia yet [to indicate] that they would be ready to be involved in a true peace process for Ukraine." Valtonen: "We welcome the possibility of finding a peace solution in Ukraine, but experience has shown it doesn't happen quickly."
- Canada's Anand: "There is an opportunity to end Russia's illegal war in Ukraine [but] we have been discussing stable security guarantees since at least 2023. Security guarantees are one piece [of the puzzle], but let's not forget the [importance of] aid given to Ukraine."
- Swedish and Danish FMs both made positive noises on participation in security guarantees without offering further details.
Some of the N5 nations have proved the most significant financial and military backers of Ukraine. Indeed, Denmark, Sweden and Norway jointly contributed USD500mln to the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) scheme. This sees Ukraine inform European NATO countries of what weaponry it needs. Those countries then check with the US what stockpiles they have. The European countries then pay the US for the weapons in USD500mln packages, and then ship them to Ukraine.
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JGB TECHS: (U5) Returns Toward Lows
- RES 3: 147.74 - High Jan 15 and bull trigger (cont)
- RES 2: 146.53 - High Aug 6
- RES 1: 141.48/142.95 - High May 2 / High Apr 7
- PRICE: 138.08 @ 16:31 GMT Jul 18
- SUP 1: 137.70 - Low Jul 16
- SUP 2: 136.57 - 1.382 proj of the Jan 28 - Feb 20 - Feb 26 bear leg
- SUP 3: 134.89 - 2.000 proj of the Jan 28 - Feb 20 - Feb 26 bear leg
JGBs hold above recent lows, however a bearish theme remains intact following the reversal posted off the mid-June highs. A continuation lower would signal scope for an extension towards 136.57, a Fibonacci projection. On the upside, the first important resistance to watch is 141.48, the May 2 high. A break of this level would be viewed as an early bullish signal.
CANADA: July BOC Cut Pricing: From Distinct Possibility To Negligible This Week
The implied probability of a July BOC rate cut has gone from a distinct possibility to negligible this week, following Tuesday's firmer-than-expected core inflation data.
- The accompanying chart shows implied pricing (in percentage points) for July's BOC decision - it dropped from around 30% implied (7+bp) prior to the labour market report last Friday, to under 20% going into CPI (4+bp), reducing after that to under 10% (<2bp).
- For the year as a whole, markets have priced out about 15bp of cuts through those two data points - now seeing about 15bp of easing through December. As such, it's very much in question whether the BOC's easing cycle is already at an end.
- Apart from the ongoing US-Canada trade negotiations, next week's scheduled highlight will be the BOC's Business Outlook Survey out Monday, followed by May Retail Sales out Thursday which will be the final major input into the macro puzzle for the BOC going into its decision on July 30.
| Meeting | Current | Last week's close (Jul 09) | Change since then | Cumulative Change From Current Rate (bp) |
| Jul 30 2025 | 2.74 | 2.68 | 5.6 | -1.9 |
| Sep 17 2025 | 2.69 | 2.60 | 9.3 | -6.0 |
| Oct 29 2025 | 2.65 | 2.53 | 12.1 | -10.5 |
| Dec 10 2025 | 2.61 | 2.45 | 15.7 | -14.6 |
USDCAD TECHS: Has Pierced The 50-Day EMA
- RES 4: 1.3920 High May 21
- RES 3: 1.3862 High May 29
- RES 2: 1.3798 High Jun 23
- RES 1: 1.3747/74 50-day EMA / High Jul 17
- PRICE: 1.3715 @ 16:56 BST Jul 18
- SUP 1: 1.3639/3557 Low Jul 08 / 03
- SUP 2: 1.3540 Low Jun 16 and the bear trigger
- SUP 3: 1.3503 1.618 proj of the Feb 3 - 14 - Mar 4 price swing
- SUP 4: 1.3473 Low Oct 2 2024
USDCAD is trading closer to its recent highs. Attention is on resistance at 1.3747, the 50-day EMA. It has been pierced. A clear break of it is required to highlight a possible stronger short-term reversal. This would open 1.3798, the Jun 23 high. For now, a bear trend remains firmly in place. A resumption of weakness would refocus attention on key support at 1.3540, the Jun 16 low. Clearance of this level would confirm a resumption of the downtrend.
