UK: Weekly FX Market Update 31 October
GBP
The “Rishi Rebound” coincided with weaker US Treasury yields and helped GBPUSD reach resistance at 1.1630
GBPEUR joined in the party and was well supported as price attempted to trade above the October high of 1.1654
Bloomberg gives the Bank of England (BoE) a 90% probability of hiking interest rates by 0.75% this Thursday
UK Chancellor Hunt has pushed back his fiscal statement to November 17th
Following the appointment of Rishi Sunak as the UK’s PM, the third within 2 months, and a reshuffling of the Cabinet, the pound gained support with GBPUSD closing 2-3% higher on the week. However, the direction from the pound this week may move from politics to monetary policy, and the decision of the Bank of England on Thursday. With Bloomberg giving a 90% probability of a 0.75% rate hike, to what extent is this already priced in? Could Thursday underwhelm, disappointing the market and push Sterling lower?
EUR
EURUSD traded above parity last week as the ECB hiked interest rates by 0.75% to 1.5%. However, it then closed the week at 0.9900
It seemed like buyer’s remorse after the rate hike, as President Lagarde said that the probability of a recession in the Eurozone had increased
ECB Board Member Villeroy added that there was “no obligation” to deliver a third jumbo rate hike at the next meeting
Eurozone CPI is released today and ECB President Lagarde speaks on Friday
Will EURUSD trade above parity again, or is it set to move lower in the face of a hawkish Fed?
USD
The market sniffed a possible Fed pivot last week after weak US Housing data. It sold US Treasuries while buying US equities, selling the US dollar.
The move fizzled out as the ECB delivered its dovish rate hike and US Personal Consumption Expenditure was released as expected
Bloomberg gives the Fed a 95% chance of hiking interest rates by 0.75% on Wednesday, eyes therefore could turn to what Fed Chair Powell will say afterwards
BlackRock Investment Managers expect ‘pivot language’ from the Fed this week. Could the market sell the US dollar again as a result?
RoW
The Bank of Japan maintains its ultra-easy monetary policy
Chinese Banks Sell USDCNY