Pound (GBP) quiet ahead of high-impact data
The pound (GBP) was muted yesterday as markets awaited high-impact British data later in the week.
Today’s jobs report and tomorrow’s consumer price index could upend Bank of England (BoE) interest rate cut expectations, so GBP investors were hesitant to place aggressive bets yesterday.
This morning, UK labour data reported an acceleration of wage growth, while unemployment beat forecasts to hold at 4.4%. This has dampened BoE rate cut bets, thereby boosting the pound.
Euro (EUR) dented by dovish ECB comments
The euro (EUR) faced a tough start to the week following some dovish comments from European Central Bank (ECB) policymaker Fabio Panetta over the weekend.
Panetta said he was worried the bank would undershoot its 2% inflation target, as he expects US tariffs to have a ‘limited, if not slightly negative’ impact on Eurozone inflation.
Germany’s ZEW economic sentiment index is out later this morning. Could an improved score this month see the euro gain ground?
US dollar (USD) quiet amid market closure
The US dollar (USD) was quiet yesterday as American markets closed for the Presidents’ Day federal holiday.
This left the ‘greenback’ to waver in a narrow range for much of the session.
Economic data from America is in short supply today. Therefore, risk appetite or any comments from Donald Trump could drive most USD movement.
Canadian dollar (CAD) wobbles despite rising oil prices
The crude-linked Canadian dollar (CAD) was mixed yesterday, with an uptick in oil prices failing to prevent CAD from slipping against its stronger peers.
Today, the focus is on Canada’s latest CPI figures. If inflation remains below the Bank of Canada’s (BoC) 2% target, then the Canadian dollar could decline amid growing rate cut bets.
Australian dollar (AUD) rebounds on RBA’s hawkish cut
After falling ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) interest rate decision last night, the Australian dollar (AUD) then rebounded. The RBA cut rates as expected but indicated it was in no rush to continue cutting.
New Zealand dollar (NZD) slips amid risk-off mood
The New Zealand dollar (NZD) fell overnight as a souring market mood dragged on the risk-sensitive ‘kiwi’.
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