North American Summary and Highlights 17 June
Overview - Tuesday FX trade was generally subdued with markets awaiting Wednesday’s FOMC decision.
North American session
In generally subdued trading the USD saw a dip in the morning but this was gradually retraced in the afternoon. USD/JPY trended steadily higher to 160.40 while EUR/USD gains peaked at 1.1620. EUR/GBP was quiet but EUR/CHF slipped from above .9220 to below .9210. AUD/USD was stable around .7070 but USD/CAD slipped back below 1.40.
May US housing starts fell sharply by 15.4% to 1.177m but this was largely on the volatile multiples sector with single starts down a modest 1.9%. Permits fell by 0.7% to 1.413m with single permits up by 0.6%.
European session
A flat, sidelined morning, as the market continues its ‘post deal exhaustion’ – and more importantly waits on the information-dense FOMC before committing on any fresh dollar direction.
Overnight saw a little bit of light backfilling on Monday’s moves, but that has levelled out, leaving zero net moves across the board and with the likes of EUR/USD back to sitting on 1.16~ waiting level for instance. Without any unexpected headlines, the market looks like it will be in hibernation mode until the Fed unfolds as this is key now.
Light on the calendar front too. ZEW economic sentiment 10.5 from -10.2, showing some pick up hopes for a deal, while the current conditions slipped to -81 from -77.8 - the results showing how much improvement is dependent on the geopolitical expectations.