Forex Previews

Week Ahead – Inflation data to dominate but Japan GDP also to be watched

Posted on May 13, 2016 at 1:08 pm GMT

Inflation data will dominate over the coming week as the UK and the US will release April CPI figures, while the Eurozone will publish its final CPI readings. The UK will remain in focus with the release of retail sales and unemployment numbers but Japanese GDP data could prove to be the biggest market mover as it is likely to influence Bank of Japan policy. Flurry of UK data may get side-lined by Brexit developments Following the Bank of England’s [..]

Bank of England keeps rates on hold but steps up warnings of Brexit risk

Posted on May 12, 2016 at 1:54 pm GMT

The Bank of England unanimously voted to keep interest rates unchanged at 0.5% and its asset purchases at £375 billion as expected at its May policy meeting today. With the upcoming referendum of the UK’s membership of the European Union just over a month away, there were no expectations of any change in the BoE’s bank rate, which has remained at a record low of 0.5% since March 2009. In its statement, the Bank said that economic growth could slow [..]

UK industrial output grows less than expected in March; sterling slides

Posted on May 11, 2016 at 10:52 am GMT

Industrial production in the United Kingdom made a tepid recovery in March following a sharp contraction the previous month. Total production rose by 0.3% month-on-month in March, cancelling out all of the previous month’s drop. However, the figure was below expectations of a more robust bounce back of 0.5%. On an annual basis, output was down 0.2% from the same month in 2015. Manufacturing growth was also positive, but only barely. Manufacturing production expanded by just 0.1% in March from [..]

Weak Chinese data points to ongoing slowdown amid growing debt fears

Posted on May 10, 2016 at 11:05 am GMT

Trade figures released at the start of the week on Sunday did little to allay fears about the health of China’s economy as they disappointed once again. Following a surprise 11.5% surge in March, exports in April turned negative again as they declined by 1.8% year-on-year, missing forecasts of a 0.1% drop. Imports also fell short of estimates as they fell at an annual rate of 10.9% in April, far worse than expectations of a 5% drop and down from [..]

Week Ahead – Bank of England, Eurozone GDP and US retail sales in focus

Posted on May 6, 2016 at 12:19 pm GMT

The UK will be in focus in the coming week as it will release some important economic data on international trade and industrial production due on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. But what will attract the most attention will be the Bank of England policy meeting and the publication of its inflation report on Thursday. It is widely expected that the BoE will leave interest rates unchanged at 0.50% as policy makers will unlikely want to take any action ahead of [..]

UK services PMI misses forecasts, another sign of slowing economy; sterling below $1.45

Posted on May 5, 2016 at 9:51 am GMT

On Thursday, the UK released yet another PMI survey that missed forecasts. Following from the manufacturing and construction PMI surveys released earlier this week, today’s services PMI came in below expectations. The PMI surveys are collectively indicating that economic growth in the UK has been stalling, down from 0.4% in the first quarter to just 0.1% in April. The UK economy has been showing signs of slowing growth since late last year, partly due to a weakening global economy and [..]

New Zealand dollar extends slide on weak dairy prices and mixed jobs data

Posted on May 4, 2016 at 11:35 am GMT

Global dairy prices failed to sustain the increase of the last two dairy auctions and fell 1.4% in yesterday’s auction, dealing a blow to signs of a recovery for the commodity, which has fallen by nearly 60% since early 2014. However, there was some good news for New Zealand exporters as the price of whole milk, the country’s main export, rose by 0.7% in Tuesday’s auction. This gave little respite to the New Zealand dollar, which is down sharply for [..]

RBA unexpectedly cuts rates for first time in a year; aussie plunges

Posted on May 3, 2016 at 11:28 am GMT

The Reserve Bank of Australia took markets by surprise on Tuesday by cutting its benchmark rate by 25bps, citing weakening inflationary pressures as the main reason for the move. The central bank lowered its cash rate for the first time in 12 months from 2.00% to a new historic low of 1.75%. Although many analysts had expected for the RBA to resume soon with its rate cutting cycle, following much weaker-than-expected quarterly inflation figures out last week, the consensus was [..]

Week Ahead – PMI data and US NFP to dominate; RBA meeting also eyed

Posted on April 29, 2016 at 1:15 pm GMT

The coming week will be a busy one for PMI data as China and the UK will see the first and only PMI releases for April, while for the Eurozone and the US, the final readings are due. Also in focus next week is the non-farm payrolls report in the United States as well as the RBA’s scheduled policy meeting. China PMI expected to improve further Manufacturing activity in China has been on a downward trend since the middle of [..]

BoJ surprises markets by keeping policy steady, sends yen surging

Posted on April 28, 2016 at 11:48 am GMT

The Bank of Japan disappointed financial markets on Thursday when it decided to keep monetary policy unchanged at its scheduled policy meeting. The decision for no action caught many analysts by surprise as expectations had been rising since last Friday that the BoJ would announce fresh stimulus measures to spur growth and inflation in Japan. Reports by Bloomberg last Friday that Bank of Japan policymakers were considering applying negative rates to the Bank’s lending facilities had triggered a yen sell-off, [..]

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