The U.S. Dollar remains strong ahead of a busy week full of important economic releases.
Last week, both the Bank of Canada and the Reserve Bank of Australia surprised market participants with a 25 bps rate hike, however, the probability of raising rates in the U.S. is low.
Looking at the week ahead, Investors’ focus will be on the upcoming inflation data as the U.S. is set to release its latest CPI on Tuesday, followed by the FED’s rate decision due on Wednesday. Key interest rates are expected to remain unchanged at 5.25%, moreover, market participants will monitor closely Jerome Powell’s press conference looking for future monetary policy guidance.
In the stock market, all three major U.S. indexes ended the week on a positive note.
Starting with the S&P500, the broad-market index registered its fourth consecutive week of gains reaching the highest level since August of last year. In the meantime, the Nasdaq posted modest gains of 0.14% closing higher for the seventh week in a row. The last time the Nasdaq was on a similar winning streak was in November 2019. Finally, the Dow rose 0.34%.
On the other hand, the gold upside is still limited. The yellow metal traded sideways during last week as the downside risks remains intact while prices keep trading below the $1985 key resistance. On the opposite, important support stands at $1935 per ounce and a clear breakdown below it should confirm another sell-off in the coming days.
Meanwhile, Oil prices faced strong selling pressure following rumors that the U.S. and Iran were near to concluding a deal that would allow Iran to export more crude oil barrels. Those reports were denied later by U.S. officials. Technically, the price of WTI crude oil is trading inside a consolidation triangle, therefore, an exit outside of this pattern is likely to determine the next direction for prices in the near term.
In Japan, all eyes will be on the BoJ’s rate decision, the central bank is expected to leave rates unchanged at -0.10%.
Economic Analyst
Amine Hiani