EUR/USD: Euro stabilizes near the 1.0830 levelDuring the Asian trading session, the EUR/USD currency pair shows consolidation near the 1.0830 level. After moderate growth on Friday, the euro moved to a decline by the end of the week, helped by new data on the American labor market.March statistics showed an increase in the number of jobs outside the US agricultural sector to 303 thousand, which significantly exceeded the previous figure of 270 thousand and analysts' expectations, which assumed an increase of 200 thousand. The unemployment rate decreased from 3.9% to 3.8%, while the average hourly wage accelerated from 0.2% to 0.3% on a monthly basis and decreased from 4.3% to 4.1% on an annual basis. Despite the strengthening of the labor market, this may force the US Federal Reserve to continue its cautious monetary policy.Meanwhile, European economic indicators released on Friday were below expectations. Production orders in Germany rose slightly by 0.2% after falling by 11.4% a month earlier, falling short of the projected level of 0.8%. Retail sales in the eurozone fell by 0.5% compared with zero change in January, while a decrease of 0.4% was expected. The annual sales dynamics improved from -0.9% to -0.7%, ahead of forecasts of -1.3%. These weak indicators reflect the pressure that inflation and high interest rates from the European Central Bank are putting on consumer demand and household budgets.Resistance levels: 1.0842, 1.0863, 1.0900, 1.0930.Support levels: 1.0820, 1.0800, 1.0765, 1.0730.USD/JPY: the head of the Central Bank of Japan assessed the prospects for the growth of national inflationDuring the Asian trading session, the USD/JPY pair showed a bullish trend, reaching the level of 151.82 after Friday's data, which increased investors' doubts about the possibility of lowering rates by the US Federal Reserve at the June meeting. The report of the US Department of Labor showed an increase in the number of jobs outside the agricultural sector by 303 thousand, which significantly exceeded the forecast of 200 thousand, and a revision of February data from 275 thousand to 270 thousand. The unemployment rate decreased from 3.9% to 3.8%, while analysts did not expect changes, and the average hourly wage rose from 0.2% to 0.3% on a monthly basis, although it slowed from 4.3% to 4.1% year-on-year.Friday's data from Japan was mixed: household spending decreased by 0.5% after falling by 6.3% a month earlier, against expectations of a decline of 3.0%. The index of leading indicators rose from 108.5 to 111.8 points, exceeding expectations of 111.6 points, while the index of matching indicators fell from 112.1 to 110.9 points. Recently published data showed an improvement in the balance of payments from 457 billion yen to 2444.2 billion yen, below the forecast of 3112.5 billion yen, and average wages increased from 1.5% to 1.8%, which may affect inflation expectations. The Eco Watchers index on the current situation fell from 51.3 to 49.8 points, and the forecast of events decreased from 53 to 51.2 points.Kazuo Ueda, the governor of the Bank of Japan, said last week that inflation could accelerate by autumn due to wage growth, the highest in the last 33 years, agreed with trade unions last month. Investors took this as a signal of a possible interest rate adjustment, recalling that on March 19, the rate was raised for the first time since 2016 from -0.10% to a range of 0.00%-0.10%. Ueda stressed that the 2.0% inflation target has not yet been reached, and that high import costs continue to affect prices, while the weakening yen may become an additional factor influencing any decision to increase borrowing costs.Resistance levels: 152.00, 152.50, 153.00, 153.50.Support levels: 151.50, 151.00, 150.50, 150.00.USD/CAD: the Bank of Canada considers the anonymity of the CBDC the key to the success of the digital currencyDuring the Asian trading session, the USD/CAD currency pair is actively testing the 1.3600 level, trying to gain a foothold above this mark. The end of last week was marked by exceeding this limit and updating the November highs, although by Friday the pair had declined, despite the positive data from the American macroeconomics.On the other hand, the employment situation in Canada turned out to be less favorable: the number of jobs decreased by 2.2 thousand, while an increase of 40.7 thousand was previously recorded, and an increase of 25.0 thousand was predicted. The unemployment rate increased from 5.8% to 6.1%, higher than the expected 5.9%, and the average hourly wage increased from 4.9% to 5.0%. However, the March Ivey business activity index rose from 53.9 to 57.5 points, exceeding analysts' expectations of 54.2 points.A Bank of Canada report titled "CBDC: Banking and Anonymity" highlights that privacy will be an important aspect for users with the possible introduction of the digital Canadian dollar. It will also attract the attention of banks, which may consider not including such transactions in financial statements, thereby creating problems for regulators when assessing the creditworthiness of companies. In turn, commercial banks may seek to reduce the anonymity of the digital currency to reduce credit risks, which will require stricter credit standards to achieve balance.Resistance levels: 1.3616, 1.3650, 1.3700, 1.3750.Support levels: 1.3580, 1.3550, 1.3524, 1.3500.AUD/USD: Australia's industrial sector continues to be under pressureThe AUD/USD currency pair remains stable at 0.6576, as it was last week, against the background of a temporary weakening of the US dollar and optimistic economic data from Australia.In February, an increase in the total amount of new housing loans was recorded by 1.2%, and an annual comparison showed an increase of 21.5%. During the month, the number of loans issued to owners renting housing increased by 0.9%, while loans for the purchase of new housing increased by 4.3%. The cost of loans for new tenants was 9.1% higher than in February of the previous year, and 20.7% more for first-time home buyers. However, exports decreased from 1.5% to -2.2%, and imports increased from 1.4% to 4.8%, which led to a reduction in the trade surplus from 10.058 billion Australian dollars to 7.280 billion. These data reflect ongoing pressure on the industrial sector, but also point to the potential for increased domestic consumption.Resistance levels: 0.6600, 0.6720.Support levels: 0.6550, ...
AUD/USD: market is anticipating the Australian inflation report for the quarterThe AUD/USD pair is experiencing a moderate rise, continuing the positive trend started yesterday, and is striving to exceed the value of 0.6450, updating the highs since April 15 against the background of current economic indicators.The index of manufacturing activity in Australia from S&P Global increased from 47.3 to 49.9 points in April, while the indicator in the service sector from Commonwealth Bank fell slightly from 54.4 to 54.2 points. The composite index showed an increase from 53.3 to 53.6 points. With the start of trading in the United States, data on similar indices are expected on the market: it is predicted that in the manufacturing sector the indicator will increase from 51.9 to 52.0 points, and in services it will also reach 52.0 points. In Australia, the quarterly inflation report is also due to be published this week, where the consumer price index is expected to accelerate from 0.6% to 0.8% of quarterly growth and decrease annual inflation from 4.1% to 3.4%.Resistance levels: 0.6456, 0.6480, 0.6500, 0.6524.Support levels: 0.6420, 0.6388, 0.6361, 0.6300.USD/CAD: currency pair stabilizes at 1.3700The USD/CAD pair shows volatile trends at 1.3700 during the Asian session, maintaining the pace of the recent bearish trend, which led to lows since April 12.Positive economic signals came from the United States, where the March activity index from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago rose to 0.15 points from 0.09. In Canada, meanwhile, new home prices remained unchanged after rising 0.1% in the previous month, and the growth rate of the industrial goods price index slowed to 0.8%, in line with forecasts.This week, the market's attention is focused on the American economy: on Thursday, the publication of primary GDP data for the first quarter is expected, which may show a slowdown in economic growth to 2.5% from 3.4%. On Friday, the key event will be an update on the personal consumption expenditure index, an important inflation indicator for the Federal Reserve, presumably showing an acceleration of the base value to 0.3% monthly and a slowdown to 2.6% on an annual basis.Resistance levels: 1.3700, 1.3750, 1.3800, 1.3853.Support levels: 1.3650, 1.3616, 1.3580, 1.3550.USD/JPY: increased business activity in Japan in AprilThe USD/JPY pair holds positions in the horizontal range around 154.72, while the US dollar shows signs of slowing down.Without intervening directly, the Bank of Japan continues to monitor the market situation, despite a number of minor interventions that were quickly smoothed out by the market. After switching from a policy of negative interest rates to a range of 0.0–0.1%, the regulator emphasizes that it will maintain a soft monetary policy due to weakening inflation.The upcoming macroeconomic publications will attract additional attention of investors: in April, the business activity index in the Japanese manufacturing sector rose to 49.9, and the index in the service sector improved to 54.6. March inflation statistics showed a drop: the general consumer price index fell to 2.7%, and the base index to 2.9%. On Friday, data on April inflation in Tokyo and the meeting of the Bank of Japan are expected, which may affect the policy of currency intervention.Resistance levels: 155.10, 156.80.Support levels: 153.90, 151.80.Analysis for GoldThe price of gold is experiencing a noticeable drop, deepening into the "bearish" trend that began in the previous days: at the moment, gold is struggling with the support level of $ 2310.00 per ounce, reaching lows that have not been observed since April 5. The downturn is fueled by a decrease in tensions in the Middle East and expectations that the US Federal Reserve will not adjust its monetary policy until the fall, perhaps even until the end of 2024.Nevertheless, there is activity in the gold futures market. According to the latest data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the volume of net speculative positions fell from 202.4 thousand to 201.9 thousand last week. The number of positions backed by cash reached 198,276 thousand for bulls and 25,415 thousand for bears. Over the past seven days, the volume of purchases decreased by 10,357 thousand contracts, while sales decreased by 4,078 thousand, indicating continued asset sales among market participants.Resistance levels: 2320.00, 2336.50, 2353.79, 2375.00.Support levels: 2300.00, 2285.00, 2265.52, ...
EUR/USD: economic mood in the eurozone improved to 43.9 pointsThe EUR/USD currency pair is showing moderate strengthening, recovering from a strong bearish trend that began last week and led to an update of the minimum values since November 2 of the previous year. The pair has now tested the 1.0625 level, waiting for new catalysts to move.The euro is supported by the latest data from the Center for European Economic Research (ZEW): the index of economic sentiment in the eurozone increased from 33.5 to 43.9 points in April, which significantly exceeded analysts' expectations of 37.2 points and was the highest result since the spring of 2022. This strengthens expectations of an improvement in the economic situation in the next six months. In addition, the region's trade balance showed a surplus of 23.6 billion euros, almost doubling compared to January, due to an increase in exports of cars and equipment, as well as due to a decrease in energy imports. Today, data on the German wholesale price index for March were also presented, which remained at the level of 0.2% monthly growth, which exceeded analysts' expectations for a decrease to -0.1%, and the annual figure was -3.0%.Resistance levels: 1.0630, 1.0660, 1.0700, 1.0730.Support levels: 1.0600, 1.0561, 1.0530, 1.0500.USD/JPY: stabilization at historically high levelsThe USD/JPY currency pair shows mixed trends, holding near the level of 154.60. Buyer activity remains significant, but new positions are being opened cautiously in anticipation of potential interventions from the Bank of Japan. The regulator expressed concern about the speculative weakening of the yen, which, despite the recent interest rate increase, did not lead to a strengthening of the currency due to bias towards a soft monetary policy. Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki confirmed that the monetary authorities are ready for decisive measures to stabilize the yen.Support for the Japanese currency also came from trade data for March: exports increased by 7.3%, despite a slight slowdown compared to February, and imports decreased by 4.9%, resulting in a trade surplus of 366.5 billion yen. In the US, on the contrary, the March data on the construction sector turned out to be less satisfactory: building permits fell by 4.3%, and the start of new construction decreased by 14.7%, which further weakened the dollar against the yen.Resistance levels: 155.00, 155.50, 156.00, 156.50.Support levels: 154.50, 154.00, 153.50, 153.00.USD/CAD: US dollar continues to dominate the currency pairThe USD/CAD currency pair is experiencing a correction, stabilizing at 1.3820 amid the activity of the US dollar and ambiguous Canadian economic statistics.March inflation data in Canada showed a 0.6% monthly increase in consumer prices and an increase in the annual index from 2.8% to 2.9%. However, the base index excluding food and energy prices showed a 0.5% monthly change and a decrease from 2.1% to 2.0% per annum, which was in line with market expectations.On the other hand, the US dollar reached a high level of 106.10 on the USDX index, which was confirmed by retail sales data. Sales in the United States increased by 0.7% monthly in March, exceeding analysts' expectations of 0.4%, and accelerated significantly year-on-year from 2.11% to 4.02%. Underlying sales also showed an increase from 0.6% to 1.1%. In addition, industrial production increased by 0.4% on a monthly basis and recovered to the level of 0.00% per annum after a previous decrease of 0.30%, which adds dynamism to the US dollar in the market.Resistance levels: 1.3850, 1.3960.Support levels: 1.3780, 1.3610.GBP/USD: analysis for the quarterWe present an analysis of the investment prospects of the GBP/USD pair for the medium term.The UK continues to experience economic difficulties caused by persistently high inflation. The actions of the Bank of England to stabilize it have not yet brought the expected result, and the current fluctuations in the pound are due to falling electricity prices on the stock market. Nevertheless, given the recent rise in oil prices, it is possible that the value of the pound will resume rising. The interest rate set by the regulator at 5.25% is likely to be supported at the next meeting on May 9, according to experts' forecasts. The consumer price index in March showed a decrease to 3.2% from 3.4%, and the main index excluding the cost of food and fuel remained at 4.2%. The pound is also feeling pressure from the retail sector: the core retail sales index increased by only 0.2% in February after rising by 3.4% a month earlier and fell by 0.5% in annual terms after an increase of 0.5% in the previous month. At the same time, the volume of retail sales in February remained unchanged, which led to an annual decline of 0.4%, and the GDP indicator for the same period decreased from 0.3% to ...
The outlook for USD/JPY looks mixed. The pair is stabilizing near the level of 154.60. Despite the high interest from buyers, investors are in no hurry to open long positions, expecting a possible intervention by the Bank of Japan in forex currency trading against the background of a critical weakening of the yen. After the historic increase in the interest rate last month, the regulator announced the continuation of a soft monetary policy. At the same time, the Minister of Finance of Japan, Shunichi Suzuki, noted that the monetary authorities are monitoring the situation with the exchange rate of the national currency and are ready to take appropriate action if necessary. In the case of currency interventions, the yen may begin to strengthen rapidly.The yen was supported yesterday by data on Japan's foreign trade, where exports increased by 7.3% in March and imports decreased by 4.9%. The trade balance has reached a surplus of ¥366.5 billion. The national consumer price index in Japan is projected to adjust from 2.8% to 2.7% in March.Today, investors will focus on the publication of the US Federal Reserve's monthly economic report, known as the Beige Book. Inflation data for March will be presented in Japan.On the Daily, the Bollinger Bands are aimed at strong growth, the MACD retains a buy signal. The Stochastic oscillator is flat in the area of maximum values.To form long positions, it is necessary to confidently overcome the resistance level of 155.00 upwards. The target will be 156.00. We will set the stop loss at 154.50.A rebound from 155.00 followed by a breakdown down to the level of 154.50 will serve as a signal to enter short positions with a target of 153.50. In this case, we will set the stop loss to ...
The dollar fell against the Canadian dollar and hovered near multi-month lows against European currencies on Tuesday as Treasury bond yields were little moved amid expectations the US Federal Reserve will not raise interest rates in the near future.Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan reiterated on Monday that he does not expect interest rates to rise until next year, lowering expectations that inflationary pressures could force the Fed to change policy sooner than stated.Read more: Causes of inflation and scientific approaches to their studyThe yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds stood at 1.6454%, continuing a decline from last week's five-week high.The dollar index to a basket of six major currencies was down 0.19% to 89.991 by 09:34. The euro rose 0.25% to $1.2181, close to its lowest level since February 26. At the same time, the pound rose 0.31% to $1.4178. The British currency was supported by the lifting of coronavirus restrictions in the UK.The Canadian dollar rose 0.31% against the US dollar to $1.2029, almost hitting a six-year high, thanks to higher oil prices. "The Aussie rose 0.46% to $0.7799. The New Zealand dollar rose 0.58% to $0.7242.The mainland yuan rose 0.2% to 6.4257. The Japanese yen rose 0.1 per cent paired with the dollar, to 109.08 yen.In the cryptocurrency market, bitcoin rose 3.81% to $45.255 but remained near a three-month low following tweet from Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Etherium rose 7.58% to $3,529.95, recovering from a two-week low hit on Monday.Read more: The history of Federal Reserve (Fed) and its ...
The foreign exchange market is better known as Forex or FX. Trading in this market has become very popular in recent years. However, this is not the case - Forex trading raises a number of questions. For example: what is the foreign exchange market? Which currency pairs are best to trade? Is currency trading risky? Some of the answers to these questions will be found in this article.What is the Forex market?The foreign exchange market is also called the Forex market or the English foreign exchange market. It is simply a market where currencies are exchanged. According to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the foreign exchange market is the largest market in terms of total volume, with up to USD 5 trillion traded daily. It is not a physical place, but rather an electronic network where institutions or individuals trade with each other.The left-hand currency is called the base currency and the right-hand currency is called the quote currency. The second currency indicates the value relative to 1 unit of the base currency. For instance, the formula EUR/USD = 1.4000 implies that EUR/USD trades at 1.4000, i.e., 1 Euro has a value of $1.40. The first currency is always expressed in the second currency. USD/JPY at 110.50 means that one USD is worth JPY 110.50. EUR/USDWhat are the best currency pairs to trade?The best currency pairs to trade effectively depend on your trading style. If you have a short term strategy, for example, if you like to scalp, then the major currency pairs will be most profitable for you because of the low spreads.On the other hand, for a fundamental trader, smaller currency pairs will be of interest based on long-term analysis. The most profitable currency pairs may be those involving the Australian dollar, Japanese yen or Canadian dollar.The best forex currency pairs:EUR/USD: this pair has the lowest spread and is not very volatile.GBP/USD: this pair is interesting in terms of spreads and possible gaps, but it is quite volatile.USD/JPY: this pair has low spreads and offers some interesting possibilities. GBP/USDHow to get started trading currencies online?To start trading currencies online, follow these steps:- Choose a regulated and reputable broker- Choose a broker by the quality of execution of trading instructions- Decide on the trading style that suits you best (scalping, intraday trading, swing trading - you keep your position open for several days)- Determine the appropriate leverage effect in the stock market according to your strategy and experience.- Do not invest more than you can afford to lose.- Choose an intuitive, simple and secure trading platform such as MetaTrader 4.- Try all the above steps on a demo account, before trading live.Read more: Features of intraday trading on the Forex marketGoldIs online currency trading dangerous?Like any financial investment, currency trading online is subject to risks. However, there are different methods to control these risks:- Determine the price of the currency pair at which you want to close a position if developments are unfavourable (for example, if you buy and the price falls, or if you sell and the price rises),- Determine the size of the trade so that your potential loss should not exceed 2-3% of your capital per trade,- Estimate your risk/return ratio (loss/profit) before you open the trade. By default you should have a greater potential for profit than loss, e.g. risk 50 pips, but try to make a profit of e.g. 100 pips.For proper money management and risk reduction it is advisable to start trading on a demo account and try things out on the dirt first. Such an account will allow you to trade in real market conditions, but with fictitious capital, so that you have a complete understanding of the foreign exchange market without any risk.Read more: Forex broker: how to choose a good ...