Yahoo Finance 
Pound to Look Past Jobless Claims Data, Dollar Eyes Fed Beige Book
Talking Points:
Pound Unlikely to Find Momentum in an On-Trend Jobless Claims Decline
US Dollar Rebound May Continue to Pro-Taper Tone in Fed’s Beige Book
NZ Dollar Weakens as Soft CPI Erodes RBNZ Bets, Yen Falls as Stocks Rise
The March set of UK Jobless Claims figures headlines the economic calendar in European hours. Consensus forecasts are pointing to a 30k decline in applications for unemployment benefits. Such an outcome would fall in line with the 12-month trend average (-30.3k), offering little impetus for traders to reshape their Bank of England policy bets following the release. With that in mind, the release seems unlikely to generate a meaningful response from the British Pound absent a significant deviation from expectations.
Later in the day, the spotlight turns to the release of the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book survey of regional economic conditions. The report informs policymakers’ view of the health of the recovery. That means that a relatively upbeat tone may bolster bets on continued “tapering” of QE asset purchases, offering yield-derived support for the US Dollar. News-flow supportive of a relatively hawkish policy outlook in the form of better-than-expected Retail Sales and CPI figures has helped lift the greenback from a six-month low this week.
The New Zealand Dollar underperformed in overnight trade after CPI data showed inflation unexpectedly slowed in the first quarter, weighing against RBNZ interest rate hike expectations. The year-on-year price growth registered at 1.5 percent, down from 1.6 percent in the three months through December 2013. Economists were forecasting a print at 1.7 percent ahead of the release. The Japanese Yen likewise came under pressure as stocks advanced in Asian trade, sapping demand for the safe-haven currency. The MSCI Asia Pacific regional benchmark equity index added 0.7 percent.
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Asia Session
GMT | CCY | EVENT | ACT | EXP | PREV |
22:45 | NZD | CPI (YoY) (1Q) | 1.5% | 1.7% | 1.6% |
22:45 | NZD | CPI (QoQ) (1Q) | 0.3% | 0.5% | 0.1% |
0:30 | AUD | Westpac Leading Index (MoM) | 0.0% | - | -0.1% |
1:30 | CNY | Entrepreneur Confidence Index (1Q) | 124.3 | - | 121.0 |
1:30 | CNY | Business Climate Index (1Q) | 128.0 | - | 124.3 |
1:45 | CNY | MNI Business Indicator (APR) | 51.1 | - | 53.4 |
2:00 | CNY | Fixed Assets Ex Rural YTD (YoY) (MAR) | 17.6% | 18.0% | 17.9% |
2:00 | CNY | Retail Sales (YoY) (MAR) | 12.2% | 12.1% | 11.8% |
2:00 | CNY | Retail Sales YTD (YoY) (MAR) | 12.0% | 11.9% | 11.8% |
2:00 | CNY | Industrial Production (YoY) (MAR) | 8.8% | 9.0% | 9.7% |
2:00 | CNY | Industrial Production YTD (YoY) (MAR) | 8.7% | 8.8% | 8.6% |
2:00 | CNY | GDP YTD (YoY) (1Q) | 7.4% | 7.3% | 7.7% |
2:00 | CNY | GDP SA (QoQ) (1Q) | 1.4% | 1.5% | 1.7% |
2:00 | CNY | GDP (YoY) (1Q) | 7.4% | 7.3% | 7.7% |
4:30 | JPY | Industrial Production (MoM) (FEB F) | 3.8% | ||
4:30 | JPY | Industrial Production (YoY) (FEB F) | 6.9% | ||
4:30 | JPY | Capacity Utilization (MoM) (FEB) | 5.9% |
European Session
GMT | CCY | EVENT | EXP | PREV | IMPACT |
8:30 | GBP | Claimant Count Rate (MAR) | 3.4% | 3.5% | Medium |
8:30 | GBP | Jobless Claims Change (MAR) | -30.0K | -34.6K | Medium |
8:30 | GBP | Average Weekly Earnings (3M/YoY) (FEB) | 1.8% | 1.4% | Low |
8:30 | GBP | Weekly Earnings ex Bonus (3M/YoY) (FEB) | 1.7% | 1.3% | Low |
8:30 | GBP | ILO Unemployment Rate (3M) (FEB) | 7.1% | 7.2% | Medium |
8:30 | GBP | Employment Change (3M/3M) (FEB) | 90K | 105K | Low |
9:00 | EUR | Euro-Zone CPI (MoM) (MAR) | 1.0% | 0.3% | Medium |
9:00 | EUR | Euro-Zone CPI (YoY) (MAR F) | 0.5% | 0.5% | Medium |
9:00 | EUR | Euro-Zone CPI - Core (YoY) (MAR F) | 0.8% | 0.8% | Medium |
9:00 | CHF | ZEW Survey (Expectations) (APR) | - | 19.0 | Medium |
Critical Levels
CCY | Supp 3 | Supp 2 | Supp 1 | Pivot Point | Res 1 | Res 2 | Res 3 |
EUR/USD | 1.3729 | 1.3771 | 1.3793 | 1.3813 | 1.3835 | 1.3855 | 1.3897 |
GBP/USD | 1.6537 | 1.6625 | 1.6677 | 1.6713 | 1.6765 | 1.6801 | 1.6889 |
--- Written by Ilya Spivak, Currency Strategist for DailyFX.com
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