Forex Major Currencies Outlook (August 12, 2014)

There have been no major reports released from the US on Monday while today has a couple of medium-tier data on tap. These are the JOLTS job openings report and the NFIB small business index, both of which are expected to print improvements and possibly add support to the US dollar.

EUR
The euro resumed its drop against the dollar since there were no reports to give the shared currency any support yesterday. German ZEW economic sentiment data is up for release today and the index might fall from 27.1 to 18.2, which might lead to more losses for the euro. Also due today is the euro zone ZEW economic sentiment figure, which might decline from 48.1 to 41.3. Weaker than expected readings could lead to a sharp drop for the euro.

GBP
The pound struggled to recover but failed when there were no reports from the UK to give it a boost yesterday. The CB leading index posted a 0.6% reading, following the previous 0.5% figure. Earlier today, the BRC retail sales monitor marked a 0.3% decline to follow the previous 0.8% drop. There are no other reports up for release from the UK today, as traders might sit on their hands ahead of tomorrow’s top-tier reports.

CHF
The franc was barely able to take advantage of the strong pickup in Swiss retail sales, which marked a 3.4% gain. Analysts were expecting to see a 0.7% rebound from the previous 0.5% decline. There are no reports up for release from Switzerland today as the franc might take its cue from the euro zone reports.

JPY
Yen pairs rallied as risk sentiment picked up during the Asian trading session, leading the Nikkei to show a strong rebound and end the day in the green. Data from Japan was mostly weaker than expected though, as the tertiary industry activity index showed a 0.1% decline while the consumer confidence index showed a small improvement from 41.1 to 41.5. There are no major reports up for release from Japan today.

Commodity Currencies (AUD, NZD, CAD)
The comdolls had a mixed performance, with the Aussie and Kiwi giving up gains to the dollar and the Loonie chalking up wins. Canadian housing starts were stronger than expected at 200K versus the estimated 194K figure. Earlier today, Australia reported an improvement in its NAB business confidence index from 8 to 11 while its quarterly HPI climbed by 1.8%. No other reports are due from the comdoll economies for the rest of the day.

By Kate Curtis from Trader's Way.