CAD gains alongside rising oil prices

Key Movers

The US dollar dipped slightly today against the JPY. This came after a nearly 8-week high with the market on alert for intervention to support the JPY, which nearly hit the 160 mark against the USD. The US Dollar Index (DXY) eased this morning as well falling to the 105.506 level. Federal Reserve member Mary Daly is scheduled to speak later today regarding the economy and monetary policy. This will take place at a partnered event with the Commonwealth Club World Affairs in California at 2:00 pm EST. Markets are eyeing this meeting for future clues of the direction of the Fed’s monetary policy.

In Eurozone news, the German IFO Business Climate Index, which is a composite index based on surveyed manufacturers, builders, wholesalers, services, and retailers in the Eurozone area, came in below expectations. The index showed an 88.6 level, below the expected 89.4 forecasts and the previous 89.3 reading. This unexpected fall indicated more pessimistic expectations out of Europe’s largest economy. Similarly, the National Bank of Belgium’s (NBB) Business Climate results came in below expectations at -11.1 against the forecasted -10.2, and previous -11.

In the UK, the GBP strengthened against the USD as markets looked beyond the UK’s general election to focus on their monetary policy outlook. Meanwhile, UK Industrial Order Expectation numbers came in at -18 versus the forecasted -26 and previous -33 readings. This shows manufacturers reported output volumes that were largely unchanged in the past 3 months.