A light one on the data docket today
The kiwi is soaring to start the day as the RBNZ left monetary policy unchanged but released projections indicating that there might be a hike in the OCR in 2H 2022.
That was enough for the bulls to chew on and more importantly, there wasn't any pushback by RBNZ governor Orr in his press conference on the currency's strength and that is allowing for NZD/USD to test waters above the 10 May high @ 0.7305.
Keep a break above that and the kiwi may look towards the highs for the year again just above the 0.7400 handle if policymakers continue to keep mum.
Elsewhere, the aussie is also dragged higher as such while other major currencies are looking more mixed once again - similar to trading yesterday.
US equities had a bright start yesterday but failed to build on that momentum to close lower, though futures are holding slightly higher for the time being.
The S&P 500 and Dow are still up on the month but the Nasdaq is down in May, though they aren't far off from the closing level in April so perhaps the rebalancing flow from month-end may not be as stark in stocks this time around.
It likely will be a quiet one in Europe barring any surprise headlines but continue to keep an eye out on the dollar with EUR/USD threatening fresh highs since January and now the kiwi also potentially breaking out to its highest levels since February.
0645 GMT - France May consumer, business confidence
Prior releases can be found here and here respectively. French consumer and business morale should see some improvement considering that vaccinations are gathering pace and the outlook towards 2H 2021 remains optimistic. That should fuel better overall economic sentiment and be reflected in the readings in the next few months.
0800 GMT - Switzerland May Credit Suisse investor sentiment
Prior release can be found here. The reading measures analysts' expectations on the Swiss economy and other economic expectations over the next 6 months.
1100 GMT - US MBA mortgage applications w.e. 21 May
Weekly US housing data, measures the change in number of applications for mortgages backed by the MBA during the week. Amid the sudden turn higher rates this year, recent mortgage activity has dipped with purchases falling sharply alongside refinancing activity so it'll be one to watch out for.
That's all for the session ahead. I wish you all the best of days to come and good luck with your trading. Stay safe out there!
