USD

The US dollar advanced against most of its peers as risk aversion was in play and data from the US came in stronger than expected. 

The CB consumer confidence index rose from an upgraded 109.4 reading to 113.7 versus the 108.9 consensus while the Richmond manufacturing index improved from 4 to 8, outpacing the estimate at 5. Pending home sales data is due today and a 0.6% increase is expected. 

EUR

The euro struggled to recover against the dollar but managed to score more wins to the commodity currencies. There were no reports out of the euro zone yesterday and none are due today, leaving traders to keep close tabs on other headlines from the region. 

GBP 

The pound was in a weak spot against most of its peers as there were no reports to keep it supported. UK banks were still closed for the holiday yesterday and are set to reopen today. BBA mortgage approvals data is due and a rise from 40.9K to 41.6K is expected.  

JPY

The yen continued to advance against its peers despite weak inflation and household spending data from Japan. Yen pairs eventually made a bit of a bounce after retail sales beat expectations with a 1.7% year-over-year gain versus the estimated 0.9% uptick. Preliminary industrial production came in at 1.5%, short of the projected 1.8% rise. Housing starts also missed expectations with a 6.7% gain versus the projected 9.6% figure. 

Commodity Currencies (AUD, NZD, CAD)

The comdolls weakened to the dollar and the yen as risk aversion extended its stay in the financial markets. There were no reports out of the comdoll economies recently and none are due today so risk sentiment could continue to drive price action. 

By Kate Curtis from  Trader’s Way