Forex news for US trading on March 31, 2016:
- January 2016 Canadian GDP 0.6% vs 0.3% exp m/m
- March 2016 US Chicago PMI 53.6 vs 50.0 exp
- US initial jobless claims 276k vs 265k exp
- Chinese President says world economic growth 'sluggish'
- US Restaurant Performance Index bounces back in February
- JPMorgan cuts Q1 and Q2 US GDP growth forecasts
- SNB's Maechler: We still have room to do more
- Iran pumped 3.2 million barrels per day in March - BBG survey
- SNB's Maechler: Flogs the same dead horse
- Fed's Evans says continued caution is called for
- Fed's Evans expects more employment growth in March
- IMF's Lagarde: Monetary policy spillovers remain and issue
- US wholesale inventories revised lower in Jan
- March 2016 US ISM Milwaukee 57.78 vs 55.22 prior
- Spain misses 2015 deficit target
Markets:
- CHF leads, JPY lags
- Gold up $8 to $1233
- WTI crude flat at $38.30
- S&P 500 down 2 points to 2061
- US 10-year yields down 5 bps to 1.77%
The euro gained for the fourth consecutive day in a break above the March highs. It rallied up to 1.1412 at 10 am ET but sagged back after the Chicago PMI and finished at 1.1380. Afternoon trading was light with non-farm payrolls looming.
The kiwi looked to extend its impressive run and briefly touched a fresh cycle high but it gave back 50 pips later and finished narrowly higher on the day.
The Canadian dollar was a similar story. USD/CAD plunged on good Canadian GDP numbers and fell below 1.29. The bidders were laying in the weeds, in part, because the growth numbers are from way back in January. The larger factor was that crude wasn't able to hold gains. As a result, the pair finished more than 100 pips from the lows and up 20 pips on the day. Earlier this week, Westpac suggested buying a dip near today's lows.
USD/JPY crept higher after touching a session low of 112.08 in early US trading. It finished up 13 pips to 112.55 on the day despite lower stocks and yields.
Cable was choppy in a 1.4350 to 1.4400 range. That's typical of a market that's searching for direction after some larger volatility.
In the day ahead, trust no one and beware of fake headlines -- it's April Fool's.
