Yesterday
- There was very little in the way of key economic data released yesterday as those of us in the UK eased ourselves back into the swing of things following the Bank Holiday weekend.
- With no economic data, and little in the way of political headlines the Pound was subjected to losses in FX space over the course of the day.
- The Pound closed down just over -0.30% against the US Dollar, trading around 1.2930 and representing a near 9-week low. However that move was more likely driven by broad based Dollar strength rather than Sterling weakness.
- That point about USD strength was confirmed by the +0.30% gain it made against the Euro, with EUR/USD closing the day down around 1.1215.
- In fact the US Dollar Index (A measure of USD strength versus 6 major rivals) hit a 22-month high of 97.78 yesterday.
- Eurozone Consumer Confidence slumped back to a reading of -8 in April, that is a joint two and a half year low. The fall into more negative territory indicates that consumers are even less confident about the economy’s prospects in the future and are therefore less likely to spend.
- According to the Sun newspaper, a poll released yesterday puts Boris Johnson comfortably ahead of his Tory rivals in the race to take the top job when Theresa May steps aside. Some 33% of the Tory grassroots activists back Boris, with the nearest challenger Dominic Raab registering just 14% of the vote.
- Canadian Wholesale Sales m/m 0.3% (0.1% Exp)
- US New Home Sales 692K (647K Exp)
Overnight
- The Aussie Dollar is firmly under pressure this morning following yet more weak economic data. This time in the form of Inflation as overnight it was revealed Aussie Inflation was flat (0.0%) during the first quarter of 2019. A small rise of +0.2% had been expected.
- At the time of writing the Aussie Dollar is down:
- -0.89% against the US Dollar (0.7038)
- -0.84% against the Pound (1.8370)
- -0.78% against the Euro (1.5932)
- Japan All Industries Activity m/m -0.2% as expected.
- German IFO Business Climate 99.2 (99.9 Ex)
Today
- Relatively quiet day on the economic data front.
- Main event will be the Bank of Canada’s monetary policy meeting, with their rate decision and statement due at 3pm and press conference at 4.15pm.
MAJOR CURRENCY PAIRS
Current at time of distribution
| Currency Pair | Interbank Rate | % Change on Day |
| GBP/EUR | 1.1530 | +0.07 |
| GBP/USD | 1.2920 | -0.09 |
| EUR/USD | 1.1196 | -0.25 |
| AUD/USD | 0.7040 | -0.85 |
ECONOMIC CALENDAR
Current at time of distribution
Current at time of distribution
| Time (GMT) | Region | Data Release | Forecast | Previous |
| 09.30 | GBP | Public Sector Net Borrowing | -0.8Bn | -0.7Bn |
| 14.00 | CNY | CB Leading Index m/m | 0.6% | |
| 14.00 | EUR | Belgian NBB Business Climate | -0.7 | -0.7 |
| 15.00 | CAD | BOC Overnight Rate | 1.75% | 1.75% |
| 15.00 | CAD | BOC Rate Statement | ||
| 15.00 | CAD | BOC Monetary Policy Report | ||
| 16.15 | CAD | BOC Press Conference |