Forex Today: Dollar under pressure after US CPI, eyes on Australian employment

Matías Salord FXStreet

The March Australian Employment is the key report of the Asian session. China will release trade balance data. More US inflation data is coming on Thursday with the Producer Price Index. The US Dollar Index is under pressure and posted on Wednesday the lowest daily close since early February.

Here is what you need to know on Thursday, April 13:

The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.1% in March, below the 0.3% increase expected, and the annual rate slowed to 5%, the smallest since May 2021. However, the Core rate edged higher from 5.5% to 5.6% YoY. Despite the persistence in Core inflation, the bond market continues to bet on rate cuts late in 2023 while still seeing some potential for another rate hike at the May FOMC meeting (the last one). The decline in US yields weighs on the US Dollar.

The US Dollar Index dropped to 101.50 and posted the lowest daily since February. More US inflation data is due on Thursday with the Producer Price Index. The weekly Jobless Claims report is also due.

EUR/USD jumped to the 1.1000 area but could not break above, while EUR/GBP rose above 0.8800. Expectations of more rate hikes from the European Central Bank (ECB) continue to offer support to the common currency.

GBP/USD gained ground for the second day in a row, and is back near the 1.2500 area, with a bullish outlook. UK GDP data and Industrial Production and Trade Balance are due on Thursday.

USD/JPY ended a positive streak and bottomed at 132.70. It rebounded during the American session above 133.00 but the short-term outlook remains bearish.

AUD/USD peaked at 0.6723 and then pulled back below 0.6700. Australia will release employment data on Thursday; market consensus is for an increase of 20,000 in jobs during March.

The Bank of Canada, as expected, kept interest rates unchanged at 4.5%, offering no significant changes in its forward guidance. BoC Governor Macklem said they are not forecasting a major contraction. He will speak again on Thursday at the International Monetary Fund Spring meetings. USD/CAD dropped for the second day in a row, falling below 1.3450, as it continues to move toward April lows.

NZD/USD rose modestly and retook 0.6200 as the Kiwi lags again. AUD/NZD rose above 1.0750, to weekly highs.

Bitcoin peaked above $30,500 after US CPI data but then pulled back, retreating to $29,800. Gold price peaked near $2,030 and then pulled back to $2,000 to end a volatile session around $2,015. Finally, silver broke decisively above $25.00.

Like this article? Help us with some feedback by answering this survey:

Author

Matías Salord

FXStreet

Matías started in financial markets in 2008, after graduating in Economics. He was trained in chart analysis and then became an educator. He also studied Journalism. He started writing analyses for specialized websites before joining FXStreet.

AUD/USD keeps the red near 0.6950 after weak Aussie jobs data

AUD/USD holds losses near 0.6950 on disappointing Australian jobs data, extending the previous day's retracement slide from the monthly high and hitting a fresh weekly low during Thursday’s Asian session. Meanwhile, declining US bond yields drag the US Dollar away from the April 2025 high, touched after Wednesday's hot US CPI, helping limit losses for the currency pair.

USD/JPY slides back below 158.00 as USD reverses post-CPI gains

USD/JPY extends the previous day's pullback from a three-week high, attracting follow-through selling and sliding below 158.00 during Thursday's Asian session. Traders remain on high alert amid speculation that authorities will step in to prop up the Japanese Yen. The US Dollar, meanwhile, reverses Wednesday's hot CPI-led gains to April 2025 highs as US bond yields retreat on China bond-buying talk, further pressuring the pair.

Gold shrugs off hot US PPI as risk aversion drives bond yields lower

Gold attracts fresh buying on Thursday as weakness across global equities, driven by mounting concerns over AI-related investments, triggers a sharp pullback in US Treasury yields and drags the US Dollar lower from fresh year-to-date highs.

Ripple clings to $1.30 support as downside risks intensify

Ripple is stuck in a bearish trend, trading near $1.30 on Thursday. The remittance token’s bearish shift reflects the broader cryptocurrency market, which remains under heavy selling amid concerns about accelerating inflation in the US.

Budget preview: Is Healey impressing the bond market?

There is less than 2 weeks to go before the Chancellor delivers his first budget. Unusually for the UK, the economic and financial backdrop to this budget is upbeat. UK bonds have been rallying, the FTSE 100 is the top performing major stock index this week, and the Pound is also stabilising versus the Dollar.

Has Bitcoin really escaped the macro forces it was built to fight?

Over 17 years ago, Satoshi Nakamoto designed Bitcoin (BTC) on the back of a global financial crisis as an alternative to the global monetary system outside the control of central banks, governments and traditional intermediaries. This raises a key question: has Bitcoin really become independent of the macroeconomic forces it was built to challenge?