Canada: Ivey PMI plummets to 26 in March vs. 41 expected

Ivey Purchasing Managers Index fell to 26 in March from 54.1.
USD/CAD pair rebounded from lows on the disappointing data.

Eren Sengezer FXStreet

The economic activity in Canada's private sector contracted at a strong pace in March with the Ivey Purchasing Managers Index plummeting to 26 (seasonally adjusted) from 54.1 in February. This reading missed the market expectation of 41 by a wide margin.

Further details of the publication revealed that the Employment Index slumped to 26.8 from 54.7 and the Supplier Deliveries Index dropped to 17.7 from 41.8.

Market reaction

The USD/CAD pair recovered slightly from the daily low it set at 1.3945 and was last seen trading at 1.3990, erasing 0.85% on a daily basis.

Author

Eren Sengezer

FXStreet

As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.

EUR/USD remains on the back foot below 1.1850

EUR/USD resumes its downtrend on Wednesday, navigating the area below the 1.1850 level in a context of modest gains in the US Dollar, while investors gear up for a slew of US data prior to the publication of the key FOMC Minutes.

GBP/USD defends 1.3550 after UK inflation data

GBP/USD is holding above 1.3550 in Wednesday's European morning, little changed following the UK Consumer Price Index (CPI) data release. The UK inflation eased as expected in January, reaffirming bets for a March BoE interest rate cut, especially after Tuesday's weak employment report.

Gold retains bullish bias amid Fed rate cut bets, ahead of Fed Minutes

Gold sticks to modest intraday gains through the early European session, reversing a major part of the previous day's heavy losses of more than 2%, to the $4,843-4,842 region or a nearly two-week low. That said, the fundamental backdrop warrants caution for bulls ahead of the FOMC Minutes, which will look for more cues about the US Federal Reserve's rate-cut path.

Pi Network rally defies market pressure ahead of its first anniversary

Pi Network is trading above $0.1900 at press time on Wednesday, extending the weekly gains by nearly 8% so far. The steady recovery is supported by a short-term pause in mainnet migration, which reduces pressure on the PI token supply for Centralized Exchanges. The technical outlook focuses on the $0.1919 resistance as bullish momentum increases.

Mixed UK inflation data no gamechanger for the Bank of England

Food inflation plunged in January, but service sector price pressure is proving stickier. We continue to expect Bank of England rate cuts in March and June. The latest UK inflation read is a mixed bag for the Bank of England, but we doubt it drastically changes the odds of a March rate cut.

Top 3 Price Prediction: Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Ripple face downside risk as bears regain control

Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Ripple remain under pressure on Wednesday, with the broader trend still sideways. BTC is edging below $68,000, nearing the lower consolidating boundary, while ETH and XRP also declined slightly, approaching their key supports.