Forex trading headlines from the European morning session 19 February
- UK claimant count Jan m/m -27.6k vs -20k exp. Unemployment rate 7.2% vs 7.1% exp/prev
- BOE MPC Minutes show another 9-0 vote to hold rates and QE
- ECB’s Nowotny says govt bond-buying US style beyond ECB remit
- Large GBPUSD option expiries today between 1.6600-50
- Eurozone construction output Dec m/m +0.9% vs -0.6% exp
- Swiss ZEW investor sentiment Feb 28.7 vs 40 exp
- Greek current account deficit Dec EUR -0.21 bln vs -0.74 bln prev
- Portugese fin min says they haven’t decided on exit strategy yet
- IMF says Portugal still facing formidable economic challenges
- EU foreign ministers to hold emergency meeting on Ukraine tomorrow
- EIB’s Hoyer says lack of investment is hampering growth in the EU
- China to steadily expand cross-border yuan useage
- ADB’s Nakai says BOJ easing is positive for Asia
- India may cut import tax on gold
- Nikkei closes down 0.52% at 14,766.53
- Shanghai comp index closes up +1.11% at 2142.55
- Japanese combined department store sales Jan +2.9% vs +1.7% prev
- Japanese leading economic index Dec 111.7 vs 111.3 prev
A weaker than expected unemployment rate caught the markets by surprise and we’ve seen renewed selling pressure on the pound. Large option expiry interest today at 1.6650 though has once again provided a base in the dips.
GBPUSD found some early buyers as traders anticipated a better jobs reading and we saw a move from 1.6690 to 1.6733 which then retreated to 1.6712 only to push down further to 1.6661 after the actual release.
EURGBP had dipped to 0.8222 from 0.8242 but soon found itself ploughing back up through to post new highs of 0.8257. Overall the pound once again has been knocked off its perch.
EURUSD has been pinned around 1.3750 after failing to hold onto the o/n gains through 1.3770 while USDJPY has dribbled lower to 101.93 from 102.17 on cross selling after a weaker Nikkei performance.USDCHF has also locked into a tight range around 0.8880 after its drop through 0.8900 to 0.8865 support yesterday.
AUD, NZD and CAD also had the morning off as all eyes have been on the UK and have just been caught in GBP crossfire.
So, the morning’s main event now done, our attention turns across the pond and tonight’s FOMC Minutes via more than a glance at the price action around expiry time at 15.00 GMT.
That’s if you believe in such things of course.
