Forex News from the European Session - 1 May 2018
- Non-Farm Payrolls: Waiting for Wage Growth
- GBP/USD retraces after weak manufacturing PMI reading.
- USD/JPY breaks daily highs: at 109.60
- Barclays Chairman asks chairman nomination committee to prepare for him leaving
- Construction and Service PMI's in focus now for the GBP
- GBP/USD tumbling through 3 months low in thin market
- Sterling hit with another bomb as UK manufacturing PMI touches 17-month low
- UK Markit PMI manufacturing 53.9% vs 54.8% expected
- EUR/USD is on an inevitable march towards 1.2000
- Dollar index takes a crack above key level for the first time since May 2017
- Dollar Index above 92: First time since early January.
- Gold extends slide after break of 100-day moving average
- GBP/USD looking for pullbacks: PMI data may give one.
- Manufacturing PMI in focus and Brexit in the background.
- AUD/USD drops on fall in commodity price index: testing lows
- Trading ideas for the European session - 1 May 2018
- Australia April commodity prices (SDR terms) -1.4%y/y. vs -2.1% prior
- Barclays bounce away their RBA 2018 hike predictions
- Nikkei 225 closes higher by 0.18% at 22,508.03
- Gentle reminder that major European markets are closed today
- Stopping talking, starting listening: hope for the Korean penninsula
- EU continues to repeat call for a permanent tariffs waiver from the US
- Nothing to get excited about down under just yet
- No change in the aussie picture now that the RBA is out of the way
- RBA statement leaves little to the imagination
- RBA leaves cash rate unchanged at 1.50%
Markets:
- WTI down by 0.96% at 67.92
- Gold down by 0.50% at 1308.73
- FTSE 100 up 0.50% at 7,547
- Bitcoin down 2.50% at 9045.148
It was a thin trading day with some of the European markets being on holiday. However, we still saw some moves in the markets and dollar strength has continued. The Dollar Index made a key move above 92 and threatens more to the upside. USD strength led to EUR/USD moving down towards 1.2000.
The RBA rate statement was digested in the European session and lower rates are set to continue for some time. The AUD/USD continued to lose value across the session and currently sits down at 0.7506 testing the bottom of a large weekly supply level.
The highlight of the session was the weak manufacturing PMI reading coming out of the UK. This is the latest in a recent run of poor data for the UK. Aided by a strengthening dollar GBP/USD tested recent lows, broke the supply level it was sat in and is currently sat at 1.3683 as we are about to enter the US session. The focus now for the GBP shifts to Wednesday's and Thursday's construction and services PMI's data releases. These will be key in setting near term direction for the GBP.
