The economic calendar is back in full swing on Tuesday, with a steady stream of European data set to make headlines. Investors can also expect several market-moving releases from the New York session focusing on US manufacturing, housing prices and monetary policy.
Action begins at 06:00 GMT with a report on German import prices for the month of February. The import price index is forecast to fall 0.3% in February, after rising 0.5% the month before.
At 07:00 GMT, the Spanish government will release preliminary inflation data at 07:00 GMT. The harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) is forecast to rise 1.6% annually for March, up from 1.2% the previous month.
Italy will release a pair of sentiment indicators at 08:00 GMT, including consumer confidence and business confidence. Both readings are forecast to weaken month-on-month. Meanwhile, Portugal is also scheduled to report on consumer and business confidence at 08:30 GMT.
The European Commission’s statistical agency will unveil its sentiment indicators at 09:00 GMT. Economic sentiment, business climate, industrial confidence, consumer confidence and services sentiment will all make headlines.
Shifting gears to North America, S&P/Case-Shiller will report on housing prices at 13:00 GMT. The home price indices are forecast to rise 6.2% annually in January, down from 6.3% the previous month.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond will release its monthly manufacturing index at 14:00 GMT. The monthly gauge is forecast to drop to 23 in March from a reading of 28 the previous month.
In terms of monetary policy, Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) member Raphael Bostic will deliver a speech at 15:00 GMT. Bostic was part of the policy committee that voted to raise interest rates last week.
EUR/USD
Europe’s common currency took advantage of a sliding dollar on Monday to launch itself to fresh five-week highs. The EUR/USD exchange rate is now trading in the mid-1.2500 region following an 80-pip surge at the beginning of the week. The pair is edging closer to the February high, with fundamental cues likely to support the euro in the near term.
GBP/USD
Cable opened the week in fine form, as prices surged past 1.4200 for the first time since the beginning of February. At the time of writing, GBP/USD was trading at 1.4231. Momentum returned to cable earlier this month after the UK and the European Union reached an agreement on a Brexit transition deal.
USD/JPY
After bottoming at 104.69 on Friday, the USD/JPY has gradually recovered. The pair is now trading comfortably above 105.00, although the near-term outlook remains firmly tilted to the downside. USD/JPY remains in a long-term downtrend, a picture that is unlikely to improve anytime soon as risk-off sentiment supports the yen.
