A Quiet Economic Calendar and Lighter Volumes Leaves Trade in Focus

Earlier in the Day:

Following a relatively busy week on the economic calendar last week, there were no material stats to provide direction through the Asian session this morning.

A lack of stats left the markets to respond to political events in the UK, the results of the EU elections and trade war chatter.

While there were no stats for the markets to consider, BoJ Governor Kuroda spoke this morning over the global economic outlook and likely issues to be discussed at the G20. The BoJ Governor did not touch on monetary policy, however.

For the Majors,

At the time of writing, the Japanese Yen was down by 0.16% to ¥109.48 against the U.S Dollar. The Kiwi Dollar was up by 0.03% to $0.6555, with the Aussie Dollar was up 0.09% to $0.6933.

Positive comments from Friday and the weekend on trade eased tensions, spilled into the Asian session this morning.

In the equity markets,

It was a mixed bag, with the Nikkei up 0.3%, whilst the CSI300, Hang Seng and ASX200 saw red. Leading the way down was the Hang Seng, down by 0.6% at the time of writing. The ASX200 and CSI300 were down by 0.06% and by 0.04% respectively.

Support for the Nikkei came from Trump’s update on U.S – Japan trade talks that are reportedly going well, along with the weaker Yen.

The Day Ahead:

For the EUR

It’s a particularly quiet start to the week, with no material stats due out of the Eurozone through the day.

While there are no material stats due out, the results of the EU elections will be the key driver on the day. The failure of the EU’s populist parties to take a bigger piece of the pie will likely be considered EUR positive.

With the U.S markets closed, trading volumes will be on the lighter side, which could see a more material move in the EUR on the day.

Sentiment towards the U.S – China trade war will also be of influence on the day. Trump’s latest comments suggest some back peddling could be on the cards. China’s response to Trump’s latest olive branch will be key, however.

At the time of writing, the EUR was up 0.09% to $1.1213.

For the Pound

There are no material stats due out of the UK today, with the UK markets closed on the day.

While the UK market is closed, the lack of any major surprises from the EU election results left the Pound largely untouched early on.

The lack of any major moves will likely leave the race for the head of the Tory Party as the main area of focus.

At the time of writing, the Pound was up 0.18% to $1.2737.

Across the Pond

It’s also a quiet day ahead for the Greenback, with the U.S markets also closed on the day.

Following weak stats late last week, the Greenback could be on the defensive at the start of the week. With volumes on the lighter side, it all hangs on how China responds to Trump’s comments from Friday.

At the time of writing, the Dollar Spot Index was down 0.06% to 97.557.

For the Loonie

There are no material stats to influence on the day.

Direction through the day will likely come from market risk sentiment ahead of Wednesday’s Bank of Canada monetary policy decision.

The Loonie was down 0.02% at C$1.3440, against the U.S Dollar, at the time of writing.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

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