Forex Major Currencies Outlook (Mar 17, 2017)

Data came in mixed as well, with initial jobless claims, housing starts, and the Philly Fed index beating expectations while building permits fell short. The preliminary UoM consumer sentiment index is due today and a rise from 96.3 to 97.1 is eyed.

EUR

The euro was off to a weak start on political headlines but it was able to get back on its feet when a couple of ECB officials had upbeat remarks. For Nowotny, the central bank might consider increasing the deposit rate before making adjustments to the benchmark rate and asset purchases. Meanwhile, Praet acknowledged the recent improvements in the economy but clarified that the ECB might not be ready to reduce easing yet. Final CPI readings were unchanged and only the region's trade balance is due today.

GBP

The pound shot higher after the BOE decision because, even though the central bank refrained from adjusting policy, the minutes revealed that Forbes voted for a hike. This signals a shift in the bias of the committee, although there's a lot of work to be done before any actual tightening move is implemented. There are no major reports due from the UK today.

CHF

The franc barely reacted to the SNB decision as the central bank refrained from making any major changes or big statements. There are still no reports due from Switzerland today so franc pairs could move to currency-specific events or data.

JPY

The yen's performance was also a mixed bag as it gave up ground to the European currencies but managed to stay afloat against the comdolls. The BOJ didn't announce any key changes in their policy decision and there are no reports due today so market sentiment could stay in play.

Commodity Currencies (AUD, NZD, CAD)

The comdolls edged slightly lower to the dollar and consolidated to the yen as traders appear to be waiting for the next big catalyst. Jobs data from Australia turned out weaker than expected as the economy lost 6.4K positions instead of gaining the projected 16.3K while the jobless rate rose from 5.7% to 5.9%. Canadian manufacturing sales data is due today.

By Kate Curtis from Trader's Way