FX.co ★ Japan Data Due On Friday

Japan is set to publish a comprehensive range of economic data this Friday, spotlighting a busy day for economic activity across the Asia-Pacific region. Upcoming releases include December statistics on unemployment, industrial production, retail sales, construction orders, and housing starts, along with January's inflation figures for Tokyo.

The unemployment rate is anticipated to remain stable at 2.5 percent. Industrial production is expected to see a modest increase of 0.3 percent month-over-month after a decline of 2.2 percent in November. Retail sales are projected to rise by 3.4 percent year-on-year, compared to a 2.8 percent increase in the previous month. Construction orders experienced a decrease of 10.2 percent year-on-year, and housing starts fell by 1.8 percent in November. Tokyo's overall inflation increased by 3.0 percent year-on-year, with the core Consumer Price Index (CPI) climbing 2.4 percent.

Australia is scheduled to release December's data on private sector credit as well as Q4 figures for producer prices. Credit is predicted to remain unchanged at 0.5 percent, while producer prices rose by 0.9 percent quarter-on-quarter and 3.9 percent year-on-year in the third quarter.

Thailand plans to announce December's figures for industrial production, current account, imports, exports, and trade balance. In November, industrial production declined by 3.58 percent year-on-year. The current account recorded a surplus of $2.00 billion, with imports increasing by 2.3 percent and exports rising by 9.1 percent year-on-year, resulting in a trade surplus of $2.00 billion.

Lastly, markets in Taiwan, China, and Hong Kong will remain closed in observance of the Lunar New Year holiday.