USD

The Greenback was in a weak spot in yesterday’s trading sessions even though there were no major reports out of the US economy. 

Risk appetite appeared to improve, as higher-yielding currencies stayed supported. Initial jobless claims and import prices data are lined up for today, with the former likely to show a drop from 282K to 279K and the latter expected to indicate a 1.7% drop. Crude oil inventories are also due today.

EUR

The euro carried on with is recovery to the dollar, despite the lack of data from the euro zone. For today, French industrial production and non-farm payrolls data are due, but these reports aren’t likely to spur huge moves. 

GBP

The pound made a quick recovery yesterday as traders probably booked profits off their short positions ahead of today’s event risks. The BOE is set to make its monetary policy statement and released the minutes of its meeting as well, revealing how many policymakers voted to keep rates and asset purchases unchanged. Recall that one MPC member voted to hike rates previously so it will be interesting to see if he would maintain this hawkish outlook given the recent financial slump in China and global equities.

CHF

The franc continued to move sideways but was able to score a few gains against the dollar yesterday. There have been no reports released from Switzerland then and none are due today, keeping risk sentiment in charge of price action.

JPY

The yen gave up ground to its forex rivals when PM Abe said that the government plans on raising the corporate tax next year while a BOJ policymaker suggested the possibility of further easing. Data from Japan was weaker than expected, with the core machinery orders report showing a 3.6% slump versus the projected 3.4% increase. PPI was also weaker than expected, indicating potentially lower inflationary pressures down the line.

Commodity Currencies (AUD, NZD, CAD)

The comdolls sold off in recent trading, most especially the Kiwi since the RBNZ cut interest rates from 3.00% to 2.75%. The BOC decided to keep rates on hold at 0.5% but acknowledged the potential risks from China and falling commodity prices. Australia’s jobs report showed a larger than expected 17.4K gain in hiring, enough to bring the jobless rate from 6.3% to 6.2%. China reported a stronger than expected 2.0% CPI reading but its PPI marked a 5.9% slump versus the estimated 5.6% drop. 

By Kate Curtis from Trader’s Way