Back in 1868, a group of Japan's officials worked together to stamp out feudalism and reform the land of the rising sun by opening borders and promoting industrialisation.
Were we too optimistic in our assessments of the U.K. economy?
For months investors have been deciphering the mixed signals from the world's largest economy, while stocks have been climbing higher, approaching record-highs.
On Friday, the EUR/USD currency pair was trading around 1.3611, just slightly above a major level of 1.36 and daily pivot at 1.3609.
It is getting a good tradition that markets remain calm in the last week of the month.
New Zealand trade balance narrowed in May, as purchases of vehicles overseas cause a higher-than-excepted rise in imports, while shipments declined over the observed period.
Japan's core consumer prices rose at the fastest pace since April 1982, advancing 3.4% in May from the previous year, boosted by a sales-tax hike and higher utility costs, which squeeze household budgets as wage gains remain subdued.
Ahead of the final GDP report, which is likely to surprise markets to the upside, due to upside revisions of both construction and manufacturing output, the cable was trading 37 pips above 1.70-mark.
It seems that Fed officials are still trying to persuade investors that the world's largest economy is on the right track and first quarter's contraction will be only a temporary nightmare that will be offset by a rapid growth in the second quarter.
While there were some negative data out of France earlier this week, with manufacturing and services PMI falling more than expected, French consumer confidence edged higher in June, as households have become more confident about their future finances.
The Australian Dollar stood around this week's low on Tuesday, a level around 100 pips below its two-and-a-half month high seen on Monday.
On Tuesday the Cabinet approved Shinzo Abe's third arrow– a set of measures aimed at boosting growth potential of the world's third largest economy.
A report from the Confederation of Business Industry was expected to show weaker consumption at the U.K. retailers, hence, market reaction was muted.
Nobody is even thinking about the recession.
German companies were worried about geopolitical tensions in Ukraine and Iraq, while consumers in Germany proved to be more resilient to external factors.
Earlier this week the Australia Institute said that the key mining sector has received almost $18 billion from the state government over the past six years.
Kuroda's optimism is feeding through the economy, as recent central bank's tankan survey is expected to show robust business sentiment and, what is more important, more aggressive capital investment plans for the future.
It seems that markets were overexcited about Mark Carney's message earlier this month when he claimed markets, consumers and businesses should prepare for a sooner-than-expected rate hike.
U.S. consumer confidence rose to the highest level in more than six years in June, while sales of new homes increased in May, reinforcing view that the nation's economy has picked up steam once again.
Business morale in Europe's powerhouse declined more than expected in June, dropping to the lowest level this year, on concerns among German companies that geopolitical tensions in Ukraine and Iraq would adversely affect their business.
According to economist John Edwards, Australia can overcome a slump in mining investment as low interest rates and infrastructure spending boost other industries, while Japan could become once again the nation's biggest trading partner.
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Monday that the nation's economy has been steadily recovering, but whether the momentum will be maintained largely depends on how exports will expand amid concerns over some overseas economies.
U.K. mortgage demand rose significantly this quarter and lenders expect it will advance further in the coming month, the Bank of England said.
Sales of existing U.S. homes increased more than expected in May, adding to evidence the sector is stabilizing after a weather-influenced quarter.