UK retail sales rebounded in January, with a gain of 1.9% m/m, its highest monthly gain since April 2021. The increase followed a decline of 4.0% in December and beat the consensus of 1.0%. The Omicron variant of corona continues to have a significant impact on consumer spending. The December drop was a result of consumers doing their Christmas shopping in October...
The Japanese yen has moved higher on Thursday, as tensions are once again rising over the Ukraine crisis. Invasions fears have ratcheted upwards after NATO warned that Russia could use a border skirmish as a pretext for a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The US has rejected Moscow's claim that it is reducing its military presence on the border and Russia expelled...
The Japanese yen continues to have a quiet week and is trading at 115.46 in the North American session, down 0.12% on the day. The US dollar enjoyed a boost earlier in the week as tensions between Russia and the West reached a fever pitch. Now that the situation has stabilized somewhat, investors are breathing easier and the dollar has lost ground. Still, there...
It has been a quiet week for the Canadian dollar, despite the crisis between Ukraine and Russia, which has captivated the world's attention. The lack of movement could change on Wednesday, as Canada releases the inflation report for February. Canada's CPI looked weak in December, with a reading of -0.1% m/m. However, inflation is expected to have jumped in...
The euro has started the week in negative territory, after sharp losses on Friday. EUR/USD is struggling to remain above the 1.13 level. The crisis on the Ukraine/Russia border has reached a fever pitch, with the US saying it expects an invasion as early as Wednesday. There are some signals that a diplomatic solution can be found, but a Russian invasion remains a...
The next week could be really interesting for cable, with the Fed and BoE being among the two most aggressive central banks and inflation in both countries continuing to rise rapidly. The pair ran into resistance last month around 1.37, where the 200/233-day SMA band crossed the 50 fib level to provide a considerable barrier of resistance. It's been on the rise...
Gold is continuing to rally on Thursday and is on course to register an eighth day of gains in the last nine. That's not bad considering markets are continuing to price in more and more rate hikes from central banks around the world this year. But perhaps that's also the problem. This isn't a gradual tightening process. It's being driven by inflation that was...
The Canadian dollar has posted slight gains on Wednesday. There are no Canadian tier-1 events on the calendar this week, so we can expect US releases will have a magnified impact on the movement of the Canadian dollar this week. With the Fed poised to launch a series of rate hikes starting in March and inflation surging in Canada, it's unlikely that the Bank of...
The Australian dollar is showing limited movement on Tuesday, after posting sharp gains at the start of the week. In the North American session, AUD/USD is trading at 0.7133, up 0.10% on the day. There are no tier-1 events out of Australia this week, but the data released this week is pointing upwards. The AIG Performance of Services Index for December and...
The Canadian dollar has started the week with strong gains, recovering after sharp losses at the end of the week. There are no Canadian tier-1 events on the calendar, so US numbers will have a magnified impact on the movement of the Canadian dollar. The US nonfarm payrolls outperformed in spectacular style, posting a gain of 467 thousand jobs in January. Many...
The British pound is slightly lower in Friday trading. It has been an excellent week for GBP/USD, which has gained 1.26%. If the pound can maintain these gains during the day, it will mark the currency's best weekly showing since December 2020. As was widely predicted, the BoE raised rates by 0.25% at Thursday's meeting. This brings the key rate 0.50% and was...
The Australian dollar headed lower earlier in the day before recovering. In the North American session, AUD/USD is trading at 0.7137, down 0.01% on the day. The RBA policy meeting went as expected, with the bank winding up its bond asset programme while preaching caution. Governor Lowe stressed that the end of QE did not mean that a rate rise was imminent and...
The Canadian dollar is flat on Wednesday, trading at 1.2685 in the North American session. Canada's GDP outperformed in November, but the positive news wasn't enough to move the sleepy Canadian dollar. GDP expanded by 0.6%, above the consensus of 0.4%. The growth was broad-based across the economy and GDP has now pushed above its pre-pandemic level in February...
The Aussie has rebounded nicely this week, recovering half the losses from last week, when it tumbled 2.5%. AUD/USD has edged higher and is trading just below the 0.71 level in the European session. There were no surprises from the RBA policy meeting earlier today. The central bank held the Cash Rate at a record low of 0.10% and announced that it would wind up...
It was a week to forget for the Canadian dollar. USD/CAD jumped 1.51%, marking the Canadian dollar's worst weekly performance since mid-August. The currency is in positive territory, as USD/CAD is down 0.31% on the day. Canada releases the Raw Materials Price Index later today. The inflation index is expected to decline -1.3%, following a -1.1% beforehand. This...
The US dollar is running roughshod over the Swiss franc this week. USD/CHF has shot up 2.16% this week, rising to its highest level since November. In the European session, the Swiss franc is trading slightly above the 0.93 level. The KoF Economic Barometer, a key indicator, rose to 107.8 in January, up slightly from 107.2 beforehand. The economy continues to be...
What started off as a calm week has turned into a rout. The euro is down 0.83% in the North American session and has fallen into 1.11 territory for the first time since June 2020. The currency has taken a nasty spill this week, falling a massive 1.73%. The markets are still buzzing over the hawkish Fed meeting, which has overshadowed today's stellar US GDP...
The pound has been range-bound against the Canadian dollar for the last week and that remains the case so far today, despite the Bank of Canada holding off on raising interest rates. It had been expected to start the tightening cycle today, with the market's pricing in up to five more over the course of the year after inflation hit a 30-year high and the labour...