Forex Previews

China manufacturing still weak but may be bottoming out; Eurozone and UK PMI improve

Posted on November 2, 2015 at 11:25 am GMT

Two separate manufacturing surveys for October confirm the headwinds still facing Chinese manufacturers, which are currently mired in a downturn. The official manufacturing PMI was unchanged at 49.8 in October against expectations it would rise to 50.0, figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Sunday. This was the third month in-a-row of a reading in contraction territory below 50. The non-manufacturing PMI fared better at 53.1, though this was slightly weaker than in September. The alternate measure [..]

Week Ahead – RBA and BoE to meet; China PMI could point to turnaround in manufacturing

Posted on October 30, 2015 at 3:16 pm GMT

Next week is set to be another data-packed one with China PMI data, US non-farm payrolls and German factory orders among the highlights. Central bank meetings from the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Bank of England will also come in focus, particularly the Bank of England, which will publish its quarterly inflation report. But the US Fed may once again steal the limelight as several Fed officials, including Janet Yellen are due to speak next week. Chinese manufacturing PMI [..]

Bank of Japan stands pat on monetary policy but further stimulus expected

Posted on October 30, 2015 at 11:44 am GMT

The Bank of Japan did not repeat last year’s shock to the markets when it unleashed a big boost to its QE program and instead kept monetary policy unchanged at its meeting on Friday. In October 2014, the Bank of Japan unexpectedly increased its asset purchase program by 30 trillion yen to 80 trillion yen per annum, fuelling the depreciation of the yen. While today’s decision was expected by a majority of economists, falling inflation and stuttering growth may yet [..]

US economy loses momentum in Q3 on weak inventories

Posted on October 29, 2015 at 2:43 pm GMT

US GDP growth slowed in the third quarter of the year, expanding at an annualized rate of 1.5% according to the advance estimate – sharply down from the second quarter’s 3.9%. Consensus estimates were for GDP to grow by 1.6%. The slower growth was attributed to a downturn in private inventory investment, which deducted 1.44% from GDP growth in the July-September quarter. Exports also slowed as the combination of a strong dollar and weak overseas demand held back export growth. [..]

RBNZ keeps rates on hold but worried about rising New Zealand dollar

Posted on October 29, 2015 at 11:39 am GMT

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) kept its official cash rate unchanged at 2.75% at its October meeting after cutting them by 25 basis points at each of its previous three meetings. A slowdown in economic growth from tumbling global dairy prices and lower inflation from falling oil prices prompted the central bank to start loosening monetary policy in June for the first time in four years. The RBNZ was among few central banks in advanced economies to tighten [..]

Fed hints at possible December rate hike; dollar jumps

Posted on October 28, 2015 at 7:46 pm GMT

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) concluded its two-day meeting today and as expected, voted to keep the federal funds rate unchanged with one dissenter voting against the decision. Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker once again voted to raise rates by 0.25% but the FOMC’s statement suggests he may not be outvoted at the next meeting. The committee sounded more upbeat than at the previous meeting, noting that the risks to the outlook for economic activity and the labor market [..]

Swedish crown fluctuates after Riksbank expands QE

Posted on October 28, 2015 at 9:59 am GMT

The Swedish crown fluctuated sharply after the Riksbank announced its policy decision to expand QE and keep its benchmark rate unchanged. Sweden’s central bank expanded its bond purchase programme by 65 billion Swedish crowns to a total of 200 billion crowns and held the benchmark repo rate at -0.35% as expected. The Riksbank has cut rates three times this year in an effort to fight risks of deflation. Rates have been lowered from 2.0% in late 2011 The central bank [..]

US durable goods orders fall again in September

Posted on October 27, 2015 at 2:15 pm GMT

US durable goods orders fall again in September Orders for durable goods – an important gauge of business spending in the US – fell by 1.2% month-on-month in September, slightly above estimates of a 1.5% drop. This follows a downwardly revised figure of -3.0% in August. Excluding transport equipment, durable goods orders fell by a smaller 0.4%, though this was sharply below forecasts that it would stay unchanged. The core rate was also subject to a downward revision for August, [..]

UK economy grows less than expected in Q3; pound weakens

Posted on October 27, 2015 at 11:30 am GMT

The UK economy cooled in the third quarter of the year as a slump in construction output proved a drag. GDP expanded by an estimated 0.5% between the second and third quarters, preliminary figures showed today. This was below consensus forecasts of 0.6% growth and compares with a robust 0.7% growth in the previous quarter. The year-on-year rate also slowed, coming in at 2.3% from 2.4% in the previous quarter. The services sector, which accounts for just under 79% of [..]

German business confidence falls slightly but expectations improve

Posted on October 26, 2015 at 11:09 am GMT

The Ifo business climate index fell slightly in Germany in October, with the index dropping to 108.2 from 108.5 in September. This is the first fall in three months but forecasts were for an even bigger fall to 107.8 as German industry adjusts to weaker global demand. The impact of the slowdown in global growth was evident in the IFO current assessment index, which fell by a bigger-than-expected amount to 112.6 in October from 114.0. Forecasts were for a reading [..]

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