Today is the last day full of news and time of active trading. Tomorrow will be a day off in all key regions except Japan.
The day began with the release of unemployment data in Australia, which turned out to be positive and strengthened the cost of the Aussie.
In the middle of the day, macroeconomic reports from Britain and the EU were published. First of all, we are talking about the PMI indices of business activity in the manufacturing sector and in the service sector. As it became clear, the economic downturn continues in the EU, especially in the manufacturing sector, where the index is falling and remains below the mark of 50 pips. Business activity in the service sector also does not meet expectations, although it is in the area of 50+ pips. The data on the British economy was better than expected: the volume of retail sales in March rose by 1.1% while growth was not expected at all.
Thus, at the end of the first half of the day the value of the Euro fell against most currencies; the pound was also under pressure despite the positive statistics because it is still in the EU and affected by the continuation of the economic downturn in the region. Commodity currencies continue to receive support: the Australian dollar due to good news on unemployment in Australia, the Canadian dollar due to the resumption of growth in oil prices, as well as yesterday's reports on the Canadian economy.
The second half of the day will also be marked by the release of indices from the US and Canada. There will also be data on the volumes of retail sales in the U.S. and on the number of initial claims for unemployment benefits. Thus, the volatility will be quite high until the end of the day for all currency pairs with the USD and the CAD. Safe assets are unlikely to find support today.
