- UK Final Q3 GDP +0.6% q/q (from rev +0.5%), Unrev +0.5% y/y
- UK Q3 C/A deficit highest on record at £15.226 bln from £7.386 bln in Q2
- Italian Oct sa retail sales +0.1% m/m, from -0.3% in Sep
- Italy’s PM Monti: Italy has the best primary surplus in Europe
A mostly dull morning in Europe with a very sparse data calendar and no auctions for traders to find an excuse to really push the market convincingly.
Market looks to be treading water ahead of the Italian senate approval of the latest austerity measures and announcement of the new Spanish cabinet
EUR/USD opened around 1.3065 when I arrived and eventually took out some offers 1.3070/80 on Middle Eastern buying, but the move ran out of steam at 1.3120 before Asian sovereign sales and talk of a France downgrade whirred through the bush telegraph, which was enough to push euro back down to 1.3040 before sitting back where i came in.
GBP/USD traded 1.5667-5729 with little reaction around the 0930 GMT data release as a stronger Q3 GDP was countered by a record C/A deficit. Asian sovereign selling was noted above 1.5720 after early Middle eastern buying, and cable later then slunk back to the 1.5660’s as EUR/GBP recovered from lows of 0.83135 to 0.8336 ( after earlier session highs around 0.83475)
USD/JPY- Can’t remember when it last moved…. – 78.00-13 covers it all. EUR/JPY stopped short of Wed highs of 102.54 and shadowed EUR/USD back down to 101.86 after highs of 102.36
AUD/USD pushed higher with EUR/USD and stayed firm as EUR/AUD was battered lower again from 1.2954 to 1.2882, with traders set to re-target yesterday’s lows of 1.2864/65. AUD/USD traded 1.0087-1.0145
WTI Crude pushed up to 99.35 before falling back to 98.50, and Gold fell about $10 from highs of $1617
European bourses were in the black with gains of around 1-1.5%
