North American Summary and Highlights 2 April

North American session

As the market waited for Trump’s tariff announcement, equities and UST yields recovered from early weakness, lifting USD/JPY from a low of 149.10 to highs above 150. EUR/USD was lifted to 1.0850 by a report the EU was planning measures to guard the economy from tariffs. GBP/USD was not far behind, rising to 1.2980. USD/CAD reversed a brief dip to 1.43 while AUD/USD was marginally softer near .63 but NZD/USD remained firm near .5740.. 

March’s ADP employment report was stronger than expected with a 155k increase but had little impact. February factory orders rose by 0.6%, marginally above consensus, with no market response.  

European morning session 

The USD was generally lower through the European morning, with the JPY, GBP, AUD and NZD making the most pronounced gains. USD/JPY lost 40 pips to 149.45, while AUD/USD gained 15 pips to reach a high of 0.6314, and NZD was stronger still, rising 20 pips to 0.5740.  GBP/USD gained 30 pips to 1.2945. EUR/USD gains were more modest, rising around 15 pips to 1.0805. The SEK also outperformed the EUR, but EUR/CHF moved higher and USDCHF was little changed.  

There was no news of any real note, but equities generally slipped lower as the market awaits the tariff announcement this evening.