Global Markets:
- Asian stock markets: Shanghai Composite gained 0.10 %, Hang Seng rose 0.65 %, ASX lost 0.55 %, Nikkei closed for holiday
- Commodities: Gold at $1234 (+0.35 %), Silver at $17.46 (+0.30 %), WTI Oil at $48.95 (-0.75 %), Brent Oil at $51.45 (-0.60 %)
- Rates: US 10-year yield at 2.50, UK 10-year yield at 1.25, German 10-year yield at 0.43
News & Data:
- UK Rightmove House Prices Mar MoM: 1.3% (Prior 2.0%)
- UK Rightmove House Prices Mar YoY: 2.3% (Prior 2.3%)
- PBoC Fixes USDCNY Reference Rate At 6.8998
- ECB’s Visco: ECB should shorten break between QE exit and rate hike
- Asia stocks mixed, dollar slips as Fed continues to weigh – RTRS
- Oil prices drop on rise in U.S. drilling – RTRS
- Dollar on defensive for packed week of Fed speakers – RTRS
CFTC Positioning Data:
- EUR short 41K vs 59K short last week. Shorts trimmed by 18K
- GBP short 107K vs 81K short last week. Shorts increased by 26K
- JPY short 71K vs 54K short last week. Shorts increased by 17K
- CHF short 9K vs 10K short last week. Shorts trimmed by 1K
- CAD long 21K vs 29K long. Longs trimmed by 8K
- AUD long 43K vs 51K long. Longs trimmed by 8K
- NZD short 6K vs 4 short last week. Shorts increased by 2K
Markets Update:
Markets were quiet overnight amid a lack of events and a public holiday in Japan.
Most currencies rose against the US Dollar overnight. EUR/USD opened around 1.0735 and rose to a high of 1.0765 later in the session. GBP/USD almost made it to 1.24, but lacked momentum to extend the gain. Meanwhile, USD/JPY remains weak. The pair started around 112.75 at the open and fell to 112.50. A test of 111.50 support seems likely in the near-term.
AUD/USD rose from 0.7685 to 0.7725. Should it break above 0.7740, strong resistance lies at 0.7780. However, should 0.7780 be cleared as well, there is not much resistance left until 0.80. NZD followed the Australian Dollar higher, rising from 0.7010 to 0.7050.
Upcoming Events:
- 07:00 GMT – German PPI
- 12:30 GMT – Canadian Wholesale Sales
- 16:45 GMT – Bundesbank President Weidmann speaks
- 18:20 GMT – BoE Member Haldane speaks
The Week Ahead:
Tuesday, March 21st
- 00:30 GMT – RBA Meeting Minutes
- 09:30 GMT – UK CPI
- 10:00 GMT – BoE Governor Carney speaks
- 10:00 GMT – FOMC Member Dudley speaks
- 12:30 GMT – US Current Account
- 12:30 GMT – Canadian Retail Sales
- 16:00 GMT – FOMC Member George speaks
- 22:00 GMT – FOMC Member Mester speaks
- 23:50 GMT – Japanese Trade Balance
- 23:50 GMT – BoJ Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, March 22nd
- 01:40 GMT – RBA Assistant Governor Debelle speaks
- 09:00 GMT – Euro Zone Current Account
- 13:00 GMT – US House Price Index
- 14:00 GMT – US Existing Home Sales
- 14:30 GMT – US Crude Oil Inventories
- 20:00 GMT – RBNZ Rate Decision
- 20:00 GMT – RBNZ Rate Statement
Thursday, March 23rd
- 07:00 GMT – German Consumer Climate
- 09:00 GMT – ECB Economic Bulletin
- 09:30 GMT – UK Retail Sales
- 12:30 GMT – US Initial Jobless Claims
- 11:00 GMT – Fed Chair Yellen speaks
- 14:00 GMT – US New Home Sales
- 21:45 GMT – New Zealand Trade Balance
Friday, March 24st
- 07:45 GMT – French GDP
- 08:00 GMT – French Manufacturing PMI
- 08:00 GMT – French Services PMI
- 08:30 GMT – German Manufacturing PMI
- 08:30 GMT – German Services PMI
- 09:00 GMT – Euro Zone Manufacturing PMI
- 09:00 GMT – Euro Zone Services PMI
- 12:30 GMT – US Core Durable Goods Orders
- 12:30 GMT – Canadian CPI
- 13:05 GMT – FOMC Member Bullard speaks
- 13:45 GMT – US Manufacturing PMI
- 14:00 GMT – FOMC Member Dudley speaks
