- ADP December employment 215K vs 133K expected
- Non-farm payrolls forecasts hiked
- FOMC minutes: Several favored cutting QE before year-end
- Initial jobless claims 372K vs 360K exp
- Japan fin min says excessive yen strength being corrected
- Boehner reelected House speaker
- Reid hints at fight over debt ceiling
- Geithner to exit shortly – BBG
- Rumors that Hugo Chavez dead or dying
- S&P 500 down 0.2% to 1459
- JPY leads, EUR and GBP lag
The market reaction to the ADP number was tame and the euro spent most of the session in the 1.3090-1.3120 range but dropped to 1.3048 after the minutes. The market is now thinking that QEfinity could end or taper before 2014.
Technically, EUR/USD closes near a 3-week low and below the recent range, possibly setting up further declines.
USD/JPY tried to unwind some of the recent gains as the crosses slumped hard but a mere 40 retracement was enough to entice buyers, especially with US Treasury yields breaking out.
USD broke yesterday’s high but the eager buyers were nowhere to be found and it drifted lower alongside NZD after the minutes.
Gold slumped down to $1663.
