Talking Points
Euro: Germany Cuts Growth Forecast, ECB Talks Down Exchange Rate Risk
British Pound: BoE Warns of Additional Support For U.K. Banks
U.S. Dollar: Rebounds Ahead of Fed’s Beige Book
Euro: Germany Cuts Growth Forecast, ECB Talks Down Exchange Rate Risk
The EURUSD tagged an overnight high of 1.3323 as European Central Bank (ECB) board member Ewald Nowotny struck a neutral tone for monetary policy and argued that the euro exchange rate is ‘not a major concern,’ but we’re seeing the single currency struggle to hold its ground as the fundamental outlook for Europe’s largest economy deteriorates.
At the same time, Governing Council member Peter Praet said ‘maintaining price stability is the main task of the ECB’ as the governments operating under the fixed-exchange rate system become increasingly reliant on monetary support, and went onto say that the unprecedented efforts taking by the central bank ‘must be complemented by measures and reforms at the national level and of European governance’ as the debt crisis continues to drag on the real economy.
Indeed, Germany’s Economy Ministry now expects the economy to expand 0.4% in 2013 versus an initial projection for a 1.0% rise, and the ECB may continue to push back its forecast of seeing the euro-area return to growth amid record-high unemployment along with the ongoing slack in private sector activity.
Although we’re seeing the EURUSD maintain the upward trend from back in July, the bearish divergence in the relative strength index continues to dampen the prospects of seeing a further advance in the exchange rate, and the pullback from 1.3403 may expose the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement from the 2009 high to the 2010 low around 1.3120 as the weakening outlook for growth and inflation raises the scope for an ECB rate cut.
British Pound: BoE Warns of Additional Support For U.K. Banks
The British Pound slipped to a fresh monthly low of 1.5975 as the Bank of England (BoE) warned two major banks in the U.K. may require billions in fresh capital, and we may see the sterling struggle to maintain the bullish trend carried over from the previous year should the GBPUSD close below the 1.6000 figure.
As the fundamental outlook remains clouded with high uncertainty, market participants continue to see scope for more quantitative easing in the U.K., but the central bank appears to be slowly moving away from its easing cycle as inflation is expected to hold above the 2% target over the policy horizon.
Beyond the vote count, the BoE Minutes due out on January 23 may show a more hawkish central bank amid the stickiness in price growth, and we may see the Monetary Policy Committee talk down speculation for more easing as the Funding for Lending Scheme continues to work its way through the real economy.
Indeed, we will scale back our bullish bias for the GBPUSD if the pair fails to put in a close above 1.6000, but the pound-dollar could still be carving out a higher low ahead of the policy statement should we see the pair trade back within the upward trending channel dating back to June.
U.S. Dollar: Rebounds Ahead of Fed’s Beige Book
The greenback is regaining its footing going into the North American trade, with the Dow Jones-FXCM U.S. Dollar Index (Ticker: USDOLLAR) bouncing back from a low of 10,046, and the reserve currency may track higher over the next 24-hours of trading should the Federal Reserve strike an improved outlook for the world’s largest economy.
The Beige Book may prop up the dollar as the central bank continues to highlight the resilience in private consumption along with the budding recovery in the housing market, and the fresh batch of central bank rhetoric may heighten the bullish sentiment surrounding the reserve currency as a growing number of Fed officials drop their dovish tone for monetary policy.
FX Upcoming
Currency
GMT
EDT
Release
Expected
Prior
USD
14:00
9:00
Total Net TIC Flows (NOV)
-$56.7B
USD
14:00
9:00
Net Long-term TIC Flows (NOV)
$1.3B
USD
14:15
9:15
Industrial Production (DEC)
0.3%
1.1%
USD
14:15
9:15
Capacity Utilization (DEC)
78.5%
78.4%
USD
14:15
9:15
Manufacturing Production (SIC) (DEC)
0.6%
1.1%
USD
15:00
10:00
NAHB Housing Market Index (JAN)
48
47
USD
15:00
10:00
Fed’s Narayana Kocherlakota Speaks on Monetary Policy
USD
15:30
10:30
DOE U.S. Crude Oil Inventories (JAN 11)
1314K
USD
15:30
10:30
DOE U.S. Distillate Inventory (JAN 11)
6777K
USD
15:30
10:30
DOE U.S. Gasoline Inventories (JAN 11)
7412K
EUR
17:00
12:00
ECB’s Jorg Asmussen Speaks on Euro Economy
USD
19:00
14:00
Fed’s Beige Book Economic Report
— Written by David Song, Currency Analyst
To contact David, e-mail dsong@dailyfx.com. Follow me on Twitter at @DavidJSong
To be added to David’s e-mail distribution list, send an e-mail with subject line “Distribution List” to dsong@dailyfx.com.
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