Daily Market Analysis from ForexMart

Fundamental GBP/USD analysis for June 17

Today, the British sterling does not show visible price fluctuations paired with the US dollar, as market participants are still analyzing the released statistics. In particular, the May consumer price index in the country was 0.5% year on year versus the April value of 0.8% y/y. The producer price index in May rose 0.3% mom after a 5.5% decline in April.

Core inflation in the UK was recorded at 1.2% y/y – lower than it was a month earlier, and weaker than expected. At the same time, the retail price index in the country amounted to only 1.0% y/y in May against the April level of 1.5%.

Such dynamics fully corresponds to the conditions when neither business nor consumers are active in the country. Fresh statistics did not reflect either a positive or a clear negative, so the pair GBP/USD will continue to fluctuate near the level of 1.2560 during the day.

GBP/USD. June 18, 2020 – Sterling continues to decline in anticipation of the Bank of England meeting

On Thursday, the GBP/USD pair continues to decline, following the dynamics of yesterday. The current quotation of the pair is 1.2475. The pressure on the sterling was exerted by weak macroeconomic data from the UK: the consumer price index (CPI) in May rose by only 0.5% after rising by 0.8% in April. At the same time, the target level of the Bank of England is at around 2%.

Such a sharp decline in inflation may force the British Central Bank to introduce additional monetary incentives, which will negatively affect the exchange rate of the national currency. Today, a meeting of the Board of the Bank of England will take place, from which market participants expect the interest rate to remain at 0.1% and increase the QE program.

An additional source of pressure on the pound remains uncertainty around Brexit. And if today the regulator decides on a new round of monetary easing, the British currency could fall to the level of 1.2400.

EUR/USD. June 19, 2020 – The euro is growing slightly from the level of 1.12

Yesterday's trading ended with a decrease in the euro to around 1.1180. The dollar rose in price to its main currency competitors amid sales of the euro and the pound, as well as amid growing investor appetite for defensive assets. The probability of the potential occurrence of the second wave of the coronavirus epidemic puts pressure on the entire spectrum of risky assets.

However, today the EU summit took place, during which the head of the European Parliament, David Sassoli, called on the heads of state to approve a plan for the restoration of the EU economy by €750 billion and a draft next seven-year budget for 2021-2027. At the same time, he recognized the presence of many disagreements on important issues and the need for another summit in the future. Such news provided some support to the European currency, and today we will see a weak growth of the euro from the level of 1.12.

EUR/USD. June 22, 2020 – Euro fluctuates slightly near the level of 1.12

The EUR/USD pair continues to trade near the level of 1.12, fluctuating slightly on both sides of it. Today, the macroeconomic calendar is almost empty, so the dynamics of the instrument will not differ in activity.

At the end of last week, market participants drew attention to the speech of US Federal Reserve Chairman J. Powell, who noted that economic recovery would be long and difficult. These comments put pressure on the dollar, which led to the pair growing to the level of 1.1230.

Today, you should pay attention to data on home sales in the US secondary market. The indicator may show growth of 1.6%, which will provide some support to the US dollar. On Thursday, important statistics on the final estimate of GDP will be released: experts predict confirmation of a preliminary estimate of the economic decline by 5%.

EUR/USD. June 23, 2020 – Euro could not overcome the level of 1.13

Yesterday, trading on the euro ended with an increase to the level of 1.1300. The reason for the growth of the EUR/USD pair was made by the statements of the White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow. The politician noted that in the USA there is no second wave of coronavirus diseases, which led to an increase in demand for risky assets.

Today, the eurozone countries have submitted their reports on business activity in the manufacturing sector and the services sector. Eurozone PMI rose from 39.4 to 46.9 points, better than forecast. The index of business activity in Germany also showed growth: from 36.6 points to 44.6, which was higher than analysts' forecasts either. Such figures provided strong support for the European currency.

In the afternoon, the US will publish business activity indexes in the manufacturing sector and services for June. Experts forecast growth from 39.8 to 48.0 points. You should also pay attention to data on new home sales in the USA for May: the forecast assumes an increase from 623 thousand to 640 thousand.

The RSI indicator pushed off the resistance level and turned towards the neutral zone. This signals that the euro is limited by the level of 1.13, and during the day we can expect a corrective decline in the pair to the level of 1.1270.

Brent. June 25, 2020 – Oil declines amid expectations of the second wave of coronavirus in the world

On Thursday, Brent quotes continued to be under pressure, fluctuating slightly at $40 per barrel. Concerns about a new outbreak of the coronavirus infection pandemic have a negative effect on the asset. WHO has announced a significant increase in the number of new diseases in the United States, China and Latin America. As a result, concerns about the slowdown in global economic recovery and lower demand for hydrocarbons returned to the market.

An additional factor in lowering oil prices was also data on changes in US oil reserves. Yesterday, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced a 1.4 million barrels increase in raw material inventories in a week, while experts forecast a decrease of 100 thousand barrels. Stock growth has been observed for the third week in a row.

Today, attention should be paid to data on US GDP and durable goods orders. If statistics support the US dollar, oil will have another factor for further decline.

EUR/USD. June 26, 2020 – Euro is under pressure near the level of 1.12

The European currency continues to remain under pressure paired with the dollar amid growing demand for safe assets. Investors fear the second wave of Covid-19, as more and more new cases of coronavirus infection are recorded in the world. The current quotation of the EUR/USD pair is 1.1225.

Additional pressure on the euro was exerted by reports that the White House administration is considering options to introduce new and increase existing tariffs on imports of products from the European Union and the UK worth $7.5 billion.

At the same time, the US dollar received support from data on the volume of orders for durable goods: the indicator in May showed an increase of 15.8% m/m after a month earlier decline of 17.7% m/m. Today, you should pay attention to the publication of statistics on personal income and expenses of Americans for May.

GBP/USD. June 29, 2020 – Sterling down to 1.23

The British sterling continues to decline at the beginning of a new trading week. The current quotation of the pair is 1.2300. Last Friday, the United States presented macroeconomic data that signaled in favor of further strengthening of the US currency. In particular, personal expenses of US citizens in May grew by 8.2% mom after a decrease of 12.6% mom in April. Analysts expected an increase of 8% m/m. Revenues, on the other hand, decreased by 4.2% m/m after rising by 10.8% m/m in April. Investors expected a decrease of 6% m/m.

In addition to statistics, the dollar was supported by reports from the Fed that the regulator suspended cash injections into financial markets and launched the reverse process. Thus, the balance of the Federal Reserve for the week decreased by $ 75.5 billion, and a week earlier – by $ 28 billion.

At the same time, pressure on the sterling continues to exert uncertainty on Brexit. Last week, Britain’s chief negotiator, David Frost, accused the EU of creating a deadlock in the negotiations. And EU negotiator Michel Barnier expects a breakthrough in resolving the issue only in October. Negotiations on Brexit will start today, however, the participants are skeptical in advance about its effectiveness. Thus, a further decline in the pound to the level of 1.23 seems quite probable.

EUR/USD. July 02, 2020 – Euro rose to the level of 1.1300, but failed to overcome it

The pair EUR/USD yesterday managed to grow to the level of 1.13, however today the quotes turned down to the level of 1.1275. Pressure on the euro was exerted by statements by German Chancellor Angela Merkel that EU members are far from an agreement on a restoration fund and budget. An additional negative brought data on the producer price index in the eurozone for May, reflecting an insufficient recovery of the indicator (-0.6% against the forecast -0.5%).

Yesterday, the USA presented data on the labor market from ADP: in June, the number of jobs increased by 2.369 million, which significantly exceeds the «failure» in May by 3.065 million. The forecast assumed a recovery of the indicator by 2.850 million. Today we should pay attention to unemployment statistics and the number of people employed in the non-agricultural sector in June. The dollar is likely to receive significant support after publication.

However, one should also take into account the fact that a certain appetite for risky assets has returned to the market, so the euro will feel confident during the day. Moreover, unemployment data in the eurozone turned out to be better than expected (7.4% against the forecast of 7.7%), which will also support the European currency.

Brent. July 03, 2020 – Potential for rising oil prices is almost exhausted

Oil prices on Friday continue to trade above $42 per barrel. The current Brent quote is $42.60. Support for the asset this week was provided by data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) and the US Department of Energy on crude oil reserves in the country, reflecting a decrease in reserves of 8.1 million and 7.1 million barrels, respectively.

However, despite a local recovery, Brent quotes may go down already in the near future amid a general deterioration in market sentiment due to the aggravation of the epidemiological situation in the world, which poses a threat to global hydrocarbon consumption.

Additional pressure may come from comments by Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak that he hopes to achieve a balance or deficit in the global oil market in July. Market participants saw in these comments a hint of Russia's unwillingness to participate in the further extension of the OPEC ++ energy deal. Thus, in the short term, oil prices may begin to decline to the area of ​​$42 per barrel or lower.