Marketwatch EU & UK

Daily Insights
October 17, 2024

  • The US dollar continues to grind higher, with EURUSD slipping further ahead of today’s ECB policy meeting. The pair has been in a steady decline since the end of last month as investors continue to weigh up the size and pace of interest cuts from both the Fed and ECB. The single currency fell again and is now trading on a 1.08 handle after testing 1.12 just a few short weeks ago.
  • Ahead of the ECB meeting, markets will this morning focus on the final CPI reading, with analysts expecting a drop to 1.8% from the previous reading of 2.2%. Headline inflation fell below the central bank’s 2% target for the first time since 2021, suggesting that the central bank is on track to continue with its rate cutting cycle.
  • A 25bp cut from the ECB is expected today as inflation hovers around the central banks target and concerns around the strength of the euro economy continue to build. Markets expect a second 25bp move at the final policy meeting of the year in December however some analysts suggest that the central bank should be bolder and deliver the same outcome by cutting 50bp today and pausing in December. That would match the Federal Reserve’s recent move; however, such a move may suggest panic from the Governing Council and put the single currency into a tailspin.
  • US Retail Sales are on the docket this afternoon along with weekly jobless claims and the Philly Fed Outlook. Retail Sales in September are expected to match August’s modest 0.1% growth as consumer confidence continues to grow at a modest pace as US households remain cautious in the face of ongoing high interest rates and caution ahead of next month’s election.

Economic Calendar

:
AUD - Employment Change
:
AUD - Unemployment Rate
:
AUD - NAB Quarterly Business Confidence
:
AUD - RBA Bulletin
:
JPY - Tertiary Industry Activity m/m
:
AUD - RBA Annual Report
:
CHF - Trade Balance
:
CNY - Foreign Direct Investment ytd/y
:
EUR - Final Core CPI y/y
:
EUR - Final CPI y/y
:
EUR - Trade Balance
:
EUR - Italian Trade Balance
:
EUR - Spanish 10-y Bond Auction
:
EUR - Main Refinancing Rate
:
EUR - Monetary Policy Statement
:
CAD - Foreign Securities Purchases
:
USD - Core Retail Sales m/m
:
USD - Retail Sales m/m
:
USD - Unemployment Claims
:
USD - Philly Fed Manufacturing Index
:
EUR - ECB Press Conference
:
USD - Capacity Utilization Rate
:
USD - Industrial Production m/m
:
GBP - Monetary Policy Report Hearings
:
USD - Business Inventories m/m
:
USD - NAHB Housing Market Index
:
USD - Natural Gas Storage
:
USD - Crude Oil Inventories
:
USD - FOMC Member Goolsbee Speaks
:
USD - Treasury Sec Yellen Speaks
:
USD - Federal Budget Balance
:
USD - TIC Long-Term Purchases
:
JPY - National Core CPI y/y

Market Indicators

Currency Pairs
Pair High Low
eur/gbp 0.83645 0.83561
gbp/usd 1.30013 1.29804
gbp/aud 1.94928 1.9374
gbp/nzd 2.14429 2.13951
usd/jpy 149.615 149.238
eur/usd 1.08651 1.0851
gbp/jpy 194.402 193.828
eur/cnh 7.74813 7.7377
usd/cnh 7.13767 7.12431
Equities and Commodities
Nasdaq 100 20248.3
DOW 43071.9
S&P 500 5850.44
BRENT CRUDE 74.32
WTI 70.53
GOLD 2682.15

This document is for information purposes only and does not constitute any recommendation or solicitation to any person to enter into any transaction or adopt any trading strategy, nor does it constitute any prediction of likely future movements in exchange rates or prices or any representation that any such future movements will not exceed those shown on any illustration. All exchange rates and figures appearing are for illustrative purposes only. You are advised to make your own independent judgment with respect to any matter contained herein.

About Simon Walker

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Simon Walker is head of the GPS Capital Markets trade desk in our London office where he is responsible for covering market risk in European hours. He has over 25 years’ experience in foreign exchange, working in both sales and trading.