Markets burst into life last week. At the open of European trading on Monday the 21st, the markets took a glance in the rear-view mirror and a ten-minute tumble followed. However, after the momentary slump, comments from the US Fed about proposed interest rate rises were discounted and the markets took off. By Friday, a range of risk-on assets, including the S&P 500, were closing in on record highs. Even ‘underperformers’ such as the FTSE 100 managed to take advantage of the positivity.
Instrument
21st Jun
28th Jun
Hourly
Daily
% Change
GBP/USD
1.3806
1.3891
Strong Sell
Strong Sell
0.62%
EUR/USD
1.1868
1.1924
Sell
Strong Sell
0.47%
FTSE 100
6,953
7,138
Strong Sell
Strong Sell
2.66%
S&P 500
4,147
4,284
Strong Sell
Strong Sell
3.30%
Gold
1,773
1,783
Neutral
Strong Sell
0.56%
Silver
2,565
2,617
Strong Sell
Strong Sell
2.03%
Crude Oil WTI
71.44
73.81
Neutral
Strong Buy
3.32%
Bitcoin
34,346
34,409
Strong Sell
Strong Sell
0.18%
Source: Forex Traders
The Week Ahead
Crude oil, FTSE 100, S&P 500, and silver were all up by more than 2%. The significant and rapid moves changed the tone of investor sentiment. The coming week is packed full of data releases that could support or stifle the upward momentum. These are the markets and news events to follow to spot the direction of the next move.
In terms of economic indicators, the current hotspots in the markets are jobs, inflation, and interest rates. There aren’t any headline announcements this week from major central banks, but there is plenty of news about jobs and prices, the topics that are likely to be of most interest.
Tuesday
Japan – Unemployment Rate
Japan – Retail Sales
France – Q1 – Unemployment Rate
Germany – Consumer Price Index
USA – CB Consumer Confidence
Wednesday
Germany – Unemployment Rate
Eurozone – Consumer Price Index
USA – ADP Employment Rate Change
Thursday
USA – Initial Jobless Claims
Friday – The big one
USA – Non-farm Payrolls
Will NFP Disappoint – again?
The US Non-farm payroll number is a cornerstone of economic reports. While shock events such as Covid have recently diminished the impact that the number has on market prices, the report looks set to take centre stage this week.
The NFP number will provide further insight into the “will they, won’t they” question facing the world’s most influential central bank, the US Federal Reserve. For weeks and months, the Fed has held back any suggestions that its super-loose monetary policy might be hauled in early, and the report on Friday will offer the best clue as to whether that will be the case.
Is inflationary pressure really “transitory” as the Fed maintains? Any upside surprise in the job numbers would challenge that idea. Putting Friday’s report into context, the NFP numbers in recent months have been disappointing. There are jobs out there, but the signs are that some sectors are yet to recover from the pandemic fully.
The build-up to the NFP release is marked by the publication of data reports from Asia and Europe. Things should be clearer by next Friday’s close, but the journey there will involve navigating a few bumps in the road.
If you want to know more about this topic, please contact us at editorial@forextraders.com.
The post The Week Ahead – Key Jobs & Prices Reports to Look Out For appeared first on Forextraders.com.
Source: https://www.forextraders.com/forex-news/the-week-ahead-key-jobs-prices-reports-to-look-out-for/
