North American Summary and Highlights 18 Dec

North American session
The USD gained some ground against the JPY and AUD through the North American session, but saw little movement versus the EUR. USD/JPY traded above 143 and AUD/USD lost 30 pips to trade below 0.67 before both stabilised near the figures. USD/CAD advanced to 1.34. EUR/USD held marginally above 1.09. 
Fed’s Mester and Goolsbee provided more questions on the market reaction to the FOMC meeting, contributing to a modest rise in UST yields. The only data was the US NAHB survey, which rose to 37 from 34, its first rise since July reached 56, and in line with expectations. Mortgage rates have moved off recent highs. The MBA house purchase index has also been showing signs of recovery from recent weak readings.
European morning session
USD/JPY gained around half a figure through the European morning, while the USD was otherwise only marginally stronger. EUR/USD was little changed, but EUR/GBP rose around 25 pips to 0.8620. 
The German IFO survey was the only significant data, and came in weaker than the published consensus, with the current assessment and expectations indices both lower. However, the business climate index was broadly in line with the German PMI released last week, so was probably less of a surprise than indicated by the published consensus forecast, EUR/USD only dipped briefly in response. 
The Eurozone composite PMI fell to 47.0 in December, reversing half the November recovery, while the UK composite PMI rose to 51.7, its highest since July.