The buck lost some ground against most of the majors in the London session as positioning ahead of the US election later today continues. EUR/USD rallied more than 150 pips and was sitting just under the 1.2800 mark as the NY session got under way. USD/CAD meanwhile continued its downward slide ad shed another -190 pips to the 1.1690/95 area. The pair should find some support into 1.1620, with further downside to 1.1530 if below there.
GBP/USD rallied about 200 points in London trading despite poor economic data. PMI construction in the UK fell to 35.1 in October from 38.8 the prior month and was well below expected. This added to the speculation that the BOE might have to cut beyond the consensus estimate of -50 bps. Despite the rally, GBP/USD remains depressed near the 1.5870/80 area and the downside focus remains while below the 1.6000 mark.
The NY session will likely be a repeat of yesterday when we say a relatively quiet stock market in terms of volatility. Equity futures are pointing to significant gains but positioning ahead of the election results could see stocks pare these gains. This should see a move towards 99.00 in USD/JPY and 127.00 in EUR/JPY.
Upcoming Economic Data Releases (NY Session) Prior Estimate
- 11/4/2008 15:00 GMT US Factory Orders SEP -4.00% -1.00%
- 11/4/2008 15:45 GMT US Fed's Fisher Speaks in Grapevine, Texas on Economic Challenges
- 11/4/2008 22:00 GMT US ABC Consumer Confidence 2-Nov -49 - -
