Mixed week last week with USD the surprise loser. Critical data due

Last week was a mixed week on the market with all of the major currencies experiencing some highs and lows, but the notable loser was the US Dollar following a couple of surprisingly low data releases towards the end of the week. GBPUSD improved by more than four cents following a combination of poor services data and a much weaker than expected non-farm payrolls. There was some consolation late on Friday with the Dollar managing to claw back some of the losses when the NFP data was completely analysed and the overall unemployment rate was seen to have dropped, as well as average earnings seeing an improvement. Rates for buying Dollars are currently the best for a month, and with quite a lot of critical data out this week it is well worth considering locking it in if you do have an upcoming property purchase in the US or you import products that need to be paid for in Dollars.

The Pound and the Euro also had a up and down week thanks to inconsistent data and central bank announcements. Most notably; the Bank of England managed to produce a significant roller coaster, all in the space of an hour on Thursday, when the vote for holding the interest rate was seen to have moved from 8-1 to 9-0, cue Sterling collapse, followed shortly after by Mark Carney ruling out any chance of an interest rate cut, cue Sterling surge.

The week ahead is a busy one with plenty of mid-month data releases due out:

Monday
European Investor Confidence

Tuesday
German Industrial Production
German Trade Balance
UK Trade Balance

Wednesday
UK Manufacturing Production
UK Industrial Production
European Economic Forecasts
Federal Reserve’s Yellen Testifies
UK GDP Estimate

Thursday
Eurogroup Meeting
UK RICS House Price Figures
US Jobless Figures
Australian RBA Governor’s Speech

Friday
German CPI Inflation
German GDP
European GDP
European Industrial Production
US Retail Sales

Obviously there is lots of data here which could cause significant movements on the currency markets, with all of the major currencies involved. Make sure you stay in close contact with your Currency Index account manager to be kept informed of exactly what is happening and what impact it is likely to have on your upcoming currency requirement.