Forex Previews

Week Ahead – Euro and ECB back in limelight; UK jobs also eyed

Posted on April 15, 2016 at 2:36 pm GMT

After falling out of the limelight the past few trading sessions, the focus will turn again on the euro as the European Central Bank meets on Thursday and important sentiment surveys are due on Tuesday and Friday. UK employment numbers will also attract attention, while some housing data out of the US and more Fed speakers, will likely keep traders busy. Key week for euro with ECB meeting and Markit PMIs In the Eurozone, the action will probably start on [..]

China GDP slows further in Q1 but signs of stabilization appear

Posted on April 15, 2016 at 1:12 pm GMT

Economic growth in China slowed to the lowest since 2009 in the first quarter of this year as the world’s second largest economy continues its transition away from heavy industries. GDP in the first three months of 2016 expanded by 6.7% year-on-year, meeting analysts’ estimates. The figure is a mild slowdown from the previous quarter when the economy grew by 6.8% but is within the government’s target range of 6.5%-7% growth. Strong credit expansion was the main driver of growth, [..]

Asian currencies tumble after Singapore central bank eases policy

Posted on April 14, 2016 at 12:51 pm GMT

Asian currencies were shaken on Thursday after the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Singapore’s central bank, unexpectedly eased its currency policy for the Singapore dollar. Unlike other central banks, the MAS sets monetary policy by managing the Singapore dollar’s exchange rate against the country’s main trading partners due to the economy’s dependency on global trade. Worried about the outlook for global growth, the MAS set the rate of appreciation of the Singapore dollar’s nominal effective exchange rate (NEER) policy band [..]

US retail sales disappoint again; dollar rise capped

Posted on April 13, 2016 at 3:07 pm GMT

Retail sales in the United States ended the first quarter in a downbeat mode as they declined by 0.3% between February and March. Expectations were for retail sales to rise by 0.1% month-on-month in March. An upward revision to February’s figure was not enough to lift the gloom for the first quarter as it was only revised up from -0.1% to 0.0%, while January’s reading was revised down from 0.2% to -0.4%. March retail spending was dragged lower by a [..]

UK inflation at 15-month high; sterling pushes above 1.43 dollars

Posted on April 12, 2016 at 10:54 am GMT

British consumer prices rose at the fastest pace since December 2014 in March as higher air fares and clothing prices drove up the headline inflation rate. Annual CPI accelerated to 0.5% in March from 0.3% in February, beating expectations of a smaller rise to 0.4%. On a month-on-month basis, CPI was up by 0.4%, above estimates of a 0.3% increase. Core inflation, which excludes food, energy, alcohol and tobacco prices, also picked up pace, rising by 1.5% year-on-year. The figure [..]

Week Ahead – Big week for Chinese data with GDP in focus

Posted on April 8, 2016 at 1:08 pm GMT

Looking ahead to the coming week, data out of China dominates the economic calendar with key indicators such as GDP and trade. US and UK inflation will also be watched closely but policy meetings by the Bank of England and the Bank of Canada are unlikely to be market movers. All eyes on China GDP Chinese inflation data will start the week on Monday. Annual CPI is forecast to head higher for a fourth straight month to increase to 2.5% [..]

Quarterly Market Review – Q1 2016

Posted on April 5, 2016 at 2:33 pm GMT

The first three months of 2016 saw the unwelcome return of the turbulence that had marred financial markets in the summer of 2015. Equity indices across the globe saw sharp losses accompanied by high volatility. Major currencies were also exposed to unusual fluctuations as safe-haven currencies were back in demand. It was also a busy quarter for central bank activity, particularly from the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan. But it was the changing tone of the Fed [..]

RBA holds rate at 2 percent for 10th month, aussie briefly rises above 0.76

Posted on April 5, 2016 at 9:56 am GMT

The Australian dollar surged after the Reserve Bank of Australia’s announcement that it held interest rates unchanged, resulting in the currency to briefly rise above the key 76 US cent level. After hitting a high of $0.7630 against the US dollar, the aussie fell back down to $0.7544 by mid-European session trading. It was widely expected that the RBA would leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2% (for a 10th consecutive month). However, some economists believe that there is [..]

Week Ahead – RBA meeting and industrial output in focus

Posted on April 1, 2016 at 12:23 pm GMT

The first week of the second quarter of 2016 looks set to start on a calm note with European industrial output data and the Reserve Bank of Australia’s April policy meeting likely to dominate the next seven days. Eurozone The Eurozone will have the busiest week starting with unemployment, producer prices and the Eurozone Sentix investor confidence index all out on Monday. Producer prices in February are expected to fall deeper into negative territory from -2.9% to -4.0%, highlighting the [..]

Euro climbs to 5-month high as Eurozone core CPI edges higher

Posted on March 31, 2016 at 2:17 pm GMT

The euro continued to be dragged higher by the retreating dollar on Thursday and the single currency got a further lift by a rise in Eurozone inflation. Euro area CPI rose to -0.1% year-on-year in March according to the flash reading from Eurostat. The figure is in line with consensus estimates and is up from -0.2% in February. More significantly, core CPI, which excludes food and energy, edged up to 0.9% in March from 0.8% the prior month and was [..]

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