UK retail sales data being the notable release but...
It is not going to overshadow the fact that the government was dealt a blow yesterday after the defeat of the main motion in parliament. Looks like it's back to the drawing board for Theresa May and Brexit.
Happy Friday, everyone! Hope you're all doing well as we look towards the end of the trading week. It's been a quiet start for the most part with the aussie and kiwi having got minor nudges after Chinese inflation data disappointed earlier.
Apart from that, there isn't much other movement but the yen is starting to pick up decent bids again after trade talks in Beijing is said to be making little progress (should've stuck with offers at 111.00, doh!).
Looking ahead, economic data releases will be few and far between in the European morning so trading will center around the ebb and flow as well as how trade talks in Beijing conclude.
0800 GMT - Spain January final CPI figures
Preliminary figures can be found here. As these are final figures, they're not expected to have much - if any - impact on markets.
0930 GMT - UK January retail sales data
Prior release can be found here. Regardless of the release here, it's all about Brexit now for the pound. With May losing the motion yesterday, traders will be increasingly worried that things could go right down to the wire and the possibility of a no-deal Brexit cannot be ruled out for the time being. Expect that to weigh on the pound more than what the data here will say.
1000 GMT - Eurozone December trade balance data
Prior report can be found here. We already had French and German figures released already so the data impact here will be rather muted. If anything, just look towards the exports/imports trend and what the trade surplus is to the US.
That's about it before we move towards North American trading. I wish you all the best of days to come and good luck with your trading!
