Currencies
- The euro (EUR) remains range bound against the US dollar (USD) at 1.3363. The single currency rose to 1.3414 after bad US Core Retail Sales data, which were the worst in the last six months, before it retraced back to 1.3363. The single currency is under pressure as the quarterly German Preliminary GDP will be announced today and is expected to be at -0.1%.
- The US dollar (USD) continues its bullish trend for a fourth consecutive day against the Japanese yen (JPY) at 102.58 as earlier today the quarterly Japanese Core Machinery Orders rose by 8.8%, while the expected increase were at 15.5%. The yen is still under pressure as the US Unemployment Claims will be announced today and are expected to be at 307K.
Equities
- European equities rose yesterday. The Germany 30 (DAX) advanced to 9195, the EU Stocks 50 (ESX) went to 3051 and the France 40 (CAC) to 4188.
Commodities
- Corn (CRN) fell to 355 USD cents per bushel as weather forecasts in US expect adequate rain conditions with supply possibly rising to a record.
Mover & Shaker with forex options
- The British Pound (GBP) dropped to a fourth month low at 1.6669 against the USD dollar (USD) yesterday as the Governor of Bank of England (BoE) said that the increase in interest rates might delay as the UK wages growth halved, despite the fall in unemployment rate which was at 6.4%.
- Option traders may consider constructing a Back Spread Strategy with Puts on the GBPUSD and gain if the pair moves lower, while the risk is limited to the premium paid.
- A Back Spread Strategy with Puts can be constructed by selling an at the money Put while buying an out of the money Put at double amount.
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Editors’ Picks
USD/JPY holds near 155.50 after Tokyo CPI inflation eases more than expected
USD/JPY is trading tightly just below the 156.00 handle, hugging multi-year highs as the Yen continues to deflate. The pair is trading into 30-plus year highs, and bullish momentum is targeting all-time record bids beyond 160.00, a price level the pair hasn’t reached since 1990.
AUD/USD stands firm above 0.6500 with markets bracing for Aussie PPI, US inflation
The Aussie Dollar begins Friday’s Asian session on the right foot against the Greenback after posting gains of 0.33% on Thursday. The AUD/USD advance was sponsored by a United States report showing the economy is growing below estimates while inflation picked up.
Gold soars as US economic woes and inflation fears grip investors
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Ethereum could remain inside key range as Consensys sues SEC over ETH security status
Ethereum appears to have returned to its consolidating move on Thursday, canceling rally expectations. This comes after Consensys filed a lawsuit against the US SEC and insider sources informing Reuters of the unlikelihood of a spot ETH ETF approval in May.
Bank of Japan expected to keep interest rates on hold after landmark hike
The Bank of Japan is set to leave its short-term rate target unchanged in the range between 0% and 0.1% on Friday, following the conclusion of its two-day monetary policy review meeting for April. The BoJ will announce its decision on Friday at around 3:00 GMT.