• US weekly jobless claims rise 3,000 to 608,000, continuing claims fall
  • BIS buys EUR/CHF just above 1.5000; rally reaches 1.5145/50
  • Philly Fed survey rebounds to -2.2 in June from -22.6 in May
  • Conference Board’s Leading economic indicators rise 1.2% in May from 1.1 in April
  • Geithner: US consumer will not lead the world out of recession
  • Irish PM: Will lose EU referendum unless assurance have force of treaty
  • US tracking North Korean ship, believed to be moving weapons, nuclear materials
  • BOC’s Carney: Rates on hold until mid-2010; Watching CAD, USD to retain dominant; intervention an option but rarely effective
  • US yields jump 17 bp in 10-year maturity.
  • Oil up 0.20 to $71.22. Gold ends at $932.50
  • S&P 500 up 0.8%

EUR/USD rallied in the wake of the Philly Fed survey, reaching the 1.4000 level and triggering a barrier at that level. Follow-through was non-existent however and the single currency was unable to build on gains in other markets like equities and commodities. A downside purge came at mid-afternoon with heavy selling from macro funds noted on the pullback. Stops were triggered in the 1.3930/40 region and again below 1.3900. We fell as low as 1.3870/75 where prices steadied, helped by buying out of the Middle East. Rebounds were modest, barely above 1.3900. The Fox story on the US tracking a North Korean ship, potentially carrying nuclear materials was blamed for what we’ll call the “nuke puke”.

USD/JPY was supported by a rebound in US bond yields. 10-year notes ended the day at 3.83%, up from 3.57% yesterday afternoon. Offers are eyed from 96.70 up through the 97.00 level, traders report.

Cable remains a choppy mess. It fell hard this morning after poor retail sales but was relatively well-bid throughout the US session as EUR/GBP fell from 0.86 in London to below 0.8500 during the New York afternoon.

Commodity currencies traded strongly this morning after the upbeat US data. AUD overcame options related selling above 0.8000 early in the day to reacgh 0.8055 before ending the session on a weak note as EUR/USD sagged. It closes at 0.7996.