EUR/USD continues to have a quiet week. On Tuesday, the pair is trading at 1.1792, up 0.05% on the day. On the release front, German ZEW Economic Sentiment posted a dismal reading of -16.1 points, missing the estimate of -14.6 points. Eurozone ZEW Economic Sentiment followed the same trend, with a reading of -12.6, well below the forecast of 0.1 points. In the US, the focus is on consumer inflation data. CPI is expected to remain pegged at 0.2% and Core CPI is forecast to stay unchanged 0.1% percent. On Tuesday, the US will release PPI reports and the Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates to a range between 1.75% and 2.00%.
The leaders of the U.S and North Korea met in a historic summit in Singapore on Tuesday. The joint statement put out by leaders was short on details, but President Trump said that President Kim Jong-un had reaffirmed its full commitment to complete denuclearization of North Korea. Although the crucial issue of verification was not addressed, there’s no denying that tensions have significantly eased and that the summit could mark a first step in bringing peace to the Korean peninsula.
The focus will be on central banks this week, with statements from the Federal Reserve on Wednesday and the ECB on Thursday. The Fed is widely expected to raise rates, with odds of a quarter-rate hike at 94%. Although the rate increase has been priced in, the U.S dollar could still make some gains against its major rivals. In Europe, the ECB will be looking for any clues with regard to the ECB’s asset-purchase program. Currently, the bank is purchasing EUR 30 billion/mth, and the scheme is scheduled to wind up in September. However, some ECB policymakers want to phase out the program slowly, rather than turn off the tap completely in September. ECB Chief Economist recently said that the ECB board members would conduct a detailed discussion about the fate of the stimulus package at the June meeting. Mario Draghi will likely make mention of the program at his press conference, so traders should be prepared for some volatility from EUR/USD on Thursday.
