USD

The US dollar had a volatile New York trading session as central bank announcements rocked the markets. 

At the end of the day, the lower-yielding currency ended mostly lower to its forex counterparts, as data from the economy came in mixed. Initial jobless claims and the Philly Fed index both came in below expectations while the core PPI surprised to the upside. The headline PPI was in line with expectations of a 0.3% decline. For today, the CPI release is lined up and weaker inflationary pressures are eyed. Also up for release are the preliminary consumer sentiment, industrial production, and inflation expectations.

EUR

The euro was under heavy selling pressure in recent trading after the SNB surprised with another announcement on negative deposit rates. Euro zone trade balance was weaker than expected at a 20 billion EUR surplus versus the estimated 21.3 billion EUR reading. Euro zone final CPI readings are up for release today and more signs of weakness could lead to more euro selling.

GBP

The pound managed to advance against the dollar in yesterday’s sessions, thanks to the relatively positive outlook for the UK economy. There have been no economic reports released from the UK then and there are none due today, indicating that the pound could be able to carry on with its slow climb.

CHF

The franc enjoyed a strong rally across the board after the SNB scrapped the franc peg. EURCHF fell by around 2000 pips even as the central bank lowered deposit rates to -0.75% from -0.25%. For SNB head Jordan, the franc is likely to stabilize later on and that the decision was a well thought-out one. Swiss retail sales data is up for release today and a 1.1% gain is eyed, which could provide further support for the franc.

JPY

The yen rallied against most of its counterparts after risk aversion set in during the SNB announcement. There have been no reports released from Japan then and none are due today, indicating that market sentiment could be responsible for yen price action for the rest of the trading week.

Commodity Currencies (AUD, NZD, CAD)

The comdolls managed to take advantage of the USD weakness than ensued after the SNB decision and corresponding USDCHF selloff. Jobs data from the Australian economy was stronger than expected, as the economy added 37.4K jobs in December and saw its jobless rate drop to 6.1%. There are no reports due from the comdoll economies today.

By Kate Curtis from Trader’s Way