Posted at 21 April 2022 / Categories Market Roundups
Market Roundup
•Canada Median CPI (YoY) 3.8%,3.5% previous
•Canada Trimmed CPI (YoY) 4.7%,4.3% previous
•Canada New Housing Price Index (MoM) 1.2%, 1.1% previous
•Canada Mar CPI (MoM) 1.4%, 1.0% forecast,1.0% previous
•Canada Mar Core CPI (MoM) 1.0%,0.5% forecast, 0.8% previous
•US Mar Existing Home Sales (MoM) -2.7%,-7.2% previous
•US Mar Existing Home Sales 5.77M,5.80M forecast, 6.02M previous
•US Gasoline Inventories -0.761M, -0.976M forecast,-3.649M previous
•US Crude Oil Inventories -8.020M, 2.471M forecast, 9.382M previous
Looking Ahead - Economic events and other releases (GMT)
• 01:30 Australia Mar Retail Sales (MoM) 1.0% forecast, 1.8% previous
• 03:00 New Zealand Mar RBNZ Offshore Holdings 53.80% previous
Currency Summaries
EUR/USD: The euro strengthened on Wednesday as upbeat German producer prices data boosted euro across the board. German producer prices rose 30.9% on the year in March, reflecting the effects of the war in Ukraine for the first time, data from the Federal Statistics Office showed on Wednesday.March's figures mark six consecutive months of increasingly steeper increases, mainly due to rising energy prices, according to the statistics office. The jump in factory gate costs, considered a leading indicator for consumer prices, was the biggest since records started in 1949, the statistics office said. Producer prices registered a jump of 4.9% compared to the previous month. Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.0861(38.2%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.0915 (21DMA).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.0815 (5DMA), a break below could take the pair towards 1.0757(23.6%fib).
GBP/USD: The British pound climbed against a broadly weak dollar on Wednesday, unruffled by Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s political woes, with attention focused on potential policy signals from the Bank of England (BoE) this week. British lawmakers are due to vote on Thursday on whether Johnson should be referred to parliament’s privileges committee for an inquiry into breaches of lockdown rules, after his apology to parliament on Tuesday. Gaining after four days of losses, sterling rose 0.4% to $1.3066, moving away from a low hit last week that marked its lowest level since November 2020. Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.3069 (38.2%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.3158 (50%fib).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.2970 (23.6%fib), a break below could take the pair towards 1.2946(Lower BB).
USD/CAD: The Canadian dollar strengthened to its highest level in more than three weeks against its U.S. counterpart on Wednesday, as domestic inflation data bolstered expectations for another upsized interest rate hike from the Bank of Canada in June.Canada's annual inflation rate accelerated faster than expected in March, hitting a 31-year high of 6.7%, amid broad price pressures, official data showed. Last week, the Bank of Canada raised its benchmark rate by half a percentage point, its biggest single hike in more than two decades, and opened the door to lifting interest rates above a neutral setting for the first time in 14 years. Its next policy decision is due on June 1. The Canadian dollar was trading 0.8% higher at 1.2512 to the greenback. Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.2557(38.2%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.2620(50%fib).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.2475(23.6%fib), a break below could take the pair towards 1.2424 (Lower BB).
USD/JPY: The dollar dipped against yen on Wednesday after the Bank of Japan stepped into the market again to defend its ultra-low interest-rate policy, drawing a sharp contrast with the United States where Treasury yields hit new highs.The BOJ again offered to buy unlimited amounts of Japanese government bonds to check the rise in Japanese 10-year yields, which were butting against its 0.25% tolerance ceiling. The U.S. dollar reached 129.43 yen for the first time since April 2002 before easing to last trade 0.21% lower at 127.93. Strong resistance can be seen at 128.23(38.2%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 129.29(23.6%fib).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 127.37(50%fib), a break below could take the pair towards 126.35 (61.8%fib).
Equities Recap
European stocks advanced on Wednesday, as a spate of strong corporate results helped outweigh worries over the Ukraine war, slowing growth and expectations of aggressive tightening by the Federal Reserve.
UK's benchmark FTSE 100 closed up by 0.37 percent, Germany's Dax ended up by 1.47 percent, France’s CAC finished the day up by 1.38 percent.
U.S. stocks ended in mixed territory on Wednesday as the tech-heavy Nasdaq was dragged down by bleak Netflix earnings, while bond yields dipped after a recent strong run.
Dow Jones closed up by 0.71 percent, S&P 500 closed down by 0.06 percent, Nasdaq settled down by 1.22 % percent.
Treasuries Recap
U.S. Treasury yields fell from three-year highs on Wednesday as dip buyers emerged and the U.S. Treasury Department saw strong demand for a sale of 20-year bonds.
The 10-year yields were last at 2.846% after reaching 2.981% overnight, the highest since December 2018. Two-year yields , which are highly sensitive to interest rates, reached 2.629%, also the highest since December 2018, before easing back to 2.582%.
Commodities Recap
Oil settled nearly unchanged on Wednesday as broader concerns about economic growth and oil demand stagnation weighed against tightening supplies.
Brent crude futures fell 45 cents, or 0.4 %, to settle at $106.80 a barrel.
The front-month WTI crude futures contract, which expires on Wednesday, rose 19 cents to settle at $102.75, unchanged.
Gold edged higher on Wednesday on a retreat in the dollar as well as worries over inflation and slowing economic growth due to the war in Ukraine, while looming U.S. interest rate hikes capped gains.
Spot gold rose 0.1% to $1,952.09 per ounce by 01:53 p.m. ET (1753 GMT), recovering from a near two-week low touched earlier. U.S. gold futures settled down 0.2% at $1,955.60.