EUR/USD: pair expects new incentives for further movement
The EUR/USD currency pair shows uncertain dynamics, fluctuating around 1.0940. Trader activity remains moderate, in anticipation of new economic insights after recent data.
Last Friday, investors carefully studied information about the reduction in annual growth in German industrial production in January to 5.5% and saw an improvement in the monthly indicator by 1.0%, which may indicate an early overcoming of economic stagnation. The producer price index in Germany showed a slight increase and a slowdown in the decrease at an annual level, ahead of forecasts, which complements positive expectations for the economy. Similarly, the announced eurozone GDP data for the fourth quarter confirmed stagnation and slight annual growth, fitting in with analysts' expectations.
In the United States, a recent employment report in February indicated a marked excess of expectations for the number of jobs created, although average wages declined slightly, which may indicate a weakening of inflationary pressures. This, in turn, reinforces speculation about the imminent transition of the Federal Reserve System to a more lenient monetary policy, pushing the dollar lower in the face of a possible reduction in borrowing costs.
- Resistance levels: 1.0964, 1.1000, 1.1050, 1.1100.
- Support levels: 1.0930, 1.0900, 1.0866, 1.0838.
GBP/USD: mixed data from the US labor market did not strengthen the dollar
During the Asian session, the GBP/USD currency pair shows mixed activity, stabilizing around 1.2850. Investors are cautious in making new decisions, but the British pound retains the potential to strengthen against the background of positive economic data.
A recent Halifax report indicated a decrease in the growth rate of house prices to 0.4% per month and to 1.7% per year, foreshadowing a possible improvement in the overall economic climate. Ahead of the upcoming announcement of labor market data, the unemployment rate is expected to remain at 3.8%, while the number of applications for unemployment benefits may increase and wage growth may decrease slightly. Special attention was drawn to the budget plan of Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt, which focuses on key economic indicators and anticipates that the Bank of England will be one of the last among the leading central banks to start lowering interest rates, postponing this decision possibly until August after the Fed and the ECB begin their adjustments in June.
- Resistance levels: 1.2890, 1.3000.
- Support levels: 1.2800, 1.2700.
AUD/USD: Australian dollar is gaining momentum within the growing 0.6650–0.6550 corridor
During the Asian trading period, the Australian dollar hovers around 0.6612, experiencing a correction after a sharp rise last week, stimulated by Australian economic reports.
The data shows that exports increased by 1.6%, while imports fell from 4% to 1.3%, which contributed to the growth of the trade balance from 10.743 billion to 11.027 billion Australian dollars.
The upcoming information on the state of the real estate market, scheduled for publication tomorrow at 02:30 GMT+2, will clarify the situation of one of the most lagging sectors of the country's economy: it is expected that the number of building permits will improve to -1.0% from the previous -10.1%, although the forecast for the construction of private houses suggests a decrease of -9.9% compared to -0.5% in the previous period. These expectations imply that the further dynamics of the currency instrument will depend on the behavior of the US dollar, which, after falling in the middle of last week, has now stabilized around 102.50 in the USDX index, despite the mixed data on Friday. At the same time, data on average hourly wages, which showed a decrease from 0.5% to 0.1% on a monthly basis and from 4.4% to 4.3% year-on-year, did not meet investors' expectations. At the same time, the number of jobs in the non—agricultural sector increased from 229,000 to 275,000, and in the private sector from 177,000 to 223,000.
- Resistance levels: 0.6630, 0.6690.
- Support levels: 0.6580, 0.6500.
Cryptocurrency market analysis
During recent trading, the BTC/USD pair has shown impressive growth, consolidating at a level exceeding 7000.00, and is currently hovering around historically high values around 71500.00. This rise allowed the currency to overcome the effects of the recent significant correction to the level of 59200.00. The rise of the cryptocurrency is due to both the upcoming halving in the Bitcoin network in April and possible changes in the monetary policy of the US Federal Reserve System.
Bitcoin market activity is increasing in anticipation of halving, which, combined with the achievement of record price levels, stimulates increased demand for this cryptocurrency. Last week, as noted by Santiment, a decrease in the volume of large transactions over $ 100.0 thousand was recorded, while the number of market participants with relatively small investments continues to increase, reaching, according to Glassnode, a historical maximum of 35.0 million addresses.
- Resistance levels: 75000.00, 81250.00, 87500.00.
- Support levels: 61150.00, 56250.00, 50000.00.