Yellen on The Hill

Wells Fargo Research Team Wells Fargo

U.S. Review

Yellen on The Hill

Retail sales grew a stronger than expected 0.4 percent in January, a sign that consumer spending will continue to be a solid support to GDP growth in Q1.
Inflation measures surprised to the upside in January with both the Consumer Price Index and the Producer Price Index climbing 0.6 percent for the month. Core inflation measures also remained firm for the month.
Housing starts fell 2.6 percent in January after rising 11.3 percent in December. Single-family starts still posted an increase for the month. The more forward looking permit data indicated that the downshift in starts may be temporary.

Global Review

Japan Strings Together Four Quarters of Growth in 2016

Preliminary estimates released this week suggest that the Japanese economy expanded at an annualized rate of 1.0 percent in the fourth quarter.
While that was a shade lighter that most analysts had forecast, it marks the first time that Japan has had positive GDP growth for all four quarters of the year since 2005.

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Wells Fargo Research Team

Wells Fargo

EUR/USD hits two-day highs near 1.1820

EUR/USD picks up pace and reaches two-day tops around 1.1820 at the end of the week. The pair’s move higher comes on the back of renewed weakness in the US Dollar amid growing talk that the Fed could deliver an interest rate cut as early as March. On the docket, the flash US Consumer Sentiment improves to 57.3 in February.

GBP/USD reclaims 1.3600 and above

GBP/USD reverses two straight days of losses, surpassing the key 1.3600 yardstick on Friday. Cable’s rebound comes as the Greenback slips away from two-week highs in response to some profit-taking mood and speculation of Fed rate cuts. In addition, hawkish comments from the BoE’s Pill are also collaborating with the quid’s improvement.

Gold climbs further, focus is back to 45,000

Gold regains upside traction and surpasses the $4,900 mark per troy ounce at the end of the week, shifting its attention to the critical $5,000 region. The move reflects a shift in risk sentiment, driving flows back towards traditional safe haven assets and supporting the yellow metal.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP rebound amid risk-off, $2.6 billion liquidation wave

Bitcoin edges up above $65,000 at the time of writing on Friday, as dust from the recent macro-triggered sell-off settles. The leading altcoin, Ethereum, hovers above $1,900, but resistance at $2,000 caps the upside. Meanwhile, Ripple has recorded the largest intraday jump among the three assets, up over 10% to $1.35.

Three scenarios for Japanese Yen ahead of snap election

The latest polls point to a dominant win for the ruling bloc at the upcoming Japanese snap election. The larger Sanae Takaichi’s mandate, the more investors fear faster implementation of tax cuts and spending plans.

XRP rally extends as modest ETF inflows support recovery

Ripple is accelerating its recovery, trading above $1.36 at the time of writing on Friday, as investors adjust their positions following a turbulent week in the broader crypto market. The remittance token is up over 21% from its intraday low of $1.12.