US Inflation Data

Summary: The Euro expectedly reacted poorly to the ZEW indexes economic readings. EUR/GBP GBP/AUD came in softer on Tuesday. GBP/NZD Read next: EUR/USD Attempts Parity (EUR/USD), Noord Stream Maintenance Is Underway (EUR/GBP), BoC Policy Decision Due Wednesday (GBP/CAD), USD/JPY  US Inflation Data will be released on Wednesday The market is reflecting bearish signals for this currency pair. The Euro expectedly reacted poorly to the ZEW indexes economic readings and is now seeing the EUR/USD currency pair testing parity. The EU region print came in at -53.8, the lowest since November 2011, reiterating the already lowering optimism in the Eurozone. Further events that could negatively affect the Euro further include an increasingly hawkish Federal Reserve, the potential energy crisis lingering over the Eurozone and recessionary fears. Focus during Wednesday's trading day will be on the US Inflation data release which will give the market further guidance around the U.S economy. EUR/USD Price Chart Euro faces more risks The market is reflecting mixed signals for this currency pair. The Pound sterling continues to be weighed down by the market's woes around the Euro. The Euro/US Dollar currency pair is testing parity. The pound was supported by the news of Prime Minister Boris Johnson stepping down in the wake of many government officials resigning. The Euro still faces risks going forward. EUR/GBP Price Chart GBP/AUD Currency pair The pound sterling to Australian Dollar entered the trading week on its front foot with the AUD coming under pressure from numerous other currencies whilst the US Dollar strengthened even against China's Renminbi and risk aversion controlled both the stock and commodity markets. Although the GBP/AUD was softer on Tuesday, it closely resembles the USD pairing against both the GBP and AUD. GBP/AUD Price Chart GBP/NZD The GBP/NZD currency pair has had a volatile start to the trading week and could see the pound sterling strengthen even more in the coming days if the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) surprises the markets and encourages the NZD to outperform other currencies. GBP/NZD Price Chart Sources: finance.yahoo.com, poundsterlinglive.com, dailyfx.com

It’s been a quiet start to the week with stocks edging lower in light trade due to the US bank holiday. It feels like last week may have left us with more questions than answers in that the US inflation data was ok, not great, the Fed paused while forecasting multiple more hikes, and the ECB hiked while insisting more is to come.   Now it’s up to the BoE to continue its firefighting mission; one that is at risk of getting out of control despite the MPC’s efforts to contain it. Of all the major economies desperately trying to get a grip on inflation while delivering a soft landing, the UK looks least likely to achieve it. The BoE will be crossing its fingers for some good news from the May inflation data the day before its decision but if recent releases are anything to go by, we probably should get our hopes up. And if we get another nasty surprise, I wouldn’t be surprised to see markets price in 50 basis points on Thursday above the 25 we see now.   More pain to come for bitcoin? Bitcoin ended last week quite positively after dropping to three-month lows on Wednesday but it continues to look vulnerable to further declines. The two-month trend is not in its favour and the news flow isn’t exactly helping the situation either. It’s had a remarkable year and remains more than 50% higher so it’s hardly a dire situation. And against that backdrop, recent losses are merely a corrective move in a more promising bull run. But there isn’t much to suggest it’s going to improve just yet, especially with the SEC going in hard on major exchanges.

First impressions can be deceiving. US non-agricultural employment rose by 209,000 in June fell short of the Bloomberg expert consensus forecast and was the weakest since December 2020. Moreover, the data for April and May were revised down by 110,000. Initially, the market perceived the report as weak, which led to a drop in Treasury bond yields and a rise in EUR/USD above 1.092. However, the devil is always in the details. In the lead-up to the report, investors were counting on strong numbers as private sector employment from ADP rose by nearly half a million people.   However, the actual non-farm payrolls turned out to be worse than that report by the largest amount since the beginning of 2022. This fact can be seen as a sign of a cooling labor market. Nevertheless, unemployment in June dropped from 3.7% to 3.6%. As long as it does not increase, we can forget about a recession in the US economy. In addition, the average wage increased faster than expected, so it's still too early for the Federal Reserve to relax.     The employment report for the US private sector turned out to be mixed. It reduced the probability of a rate hike to 5.75% in 2023 from 41% to 36%, which worsened the position of the US dollar against the main world currencies. However, Deutsche Bank noted that only a figure of +100,000 or less for non-farm payrolls could change the worldview of FOMC officials and make them abandon their plans for two acts of monetary restriction this year. June employment data gave food for thought to both the "hawks" and "centrists" of the Fed, as well as the "bulls" and "bears" for EUR/USD.   Now, investors' attention is shifting to US inflation data and Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech in Jackson Hole. Bloomberg experts expect consumer prices to slow in June from 4% to 3.1%, and core inflation from 5.3% to 5% year-on-year. CPI is moving so quickly towards the 2% target that it's as if Fed officials have not changed their minds. Could it be that this time the financial market will be right? And those who went against the Fed will make money? We'll see.     Not everyone agrees with this. ING notes that the minutes of the FOMC's June meeting set a very high bar for incoming data for the Bank to abandon its plans. The US labor market report is unlikely to have surpassed this bar. Core inflation continues to remain high, and the economy is firmly on its feet.   All this allows ING to predict the EUR/USD pair's fall towards 1.08 within the next week. Technically, on the daily chart, there is a battle for the fair value at 1.092. Closing above this level will allow you to buy on a breakout of resistance at 1.0935. This is where the upper band of the consolidation range within the "Spike and Ledge" pattern is located. On the contrary, if the 1.092 mark persists for the bears, we will sell the euro from $1.089.      

It’s been a relatively slow start to the week but there’s still plenty to look forward to, most notably the US inflation data on Wednesday. Friday’s jobs report did nothing to level the debate on whether to pause at the next Fed meeting in two weeks. In fact, it may have even cemented another 25 basis point hike despite the NFP number falling short of expectations and, to the relief of many, well short of the ADP release. Wage growth remains a concern and on that front, the report was hot. At 0.4%, the monthly increase was a little higher than anticipated, while the annual reading remained at 4.4% (after an upward revision to the May number) despite an expectation that it would drop to 4.2%. Markets now see another hike as being almost 90% likely which seems fair under the circumstances. Weak Chinese demand sees inflation flatline in June The data from China overnight paints quite the opposite picture. An economy struggling on the demand side, despite initially rebounding strongly following the abolishment of zero-Covid. Excess supply is causing deflation at the PPI level and even CPI is now flat on an annual basis. This is more pronounced in goods, a trend we’re seeing elsewhere as services remain where the demand is, but even here we’re seeing more weakness than expected. Stimulus feels inevitable but so far it hasn’t been forthcoming enough and when it does arrive it will likely continue to be very targeted.  

Gold choppy after NFP, US inflation data up next It’s been a choppy couple of weeks for gold which appears to have consolidated again, this time in the $1,900-$1,940 range. There hasn’t been any particularly good news for the yellow metal of late and Friday’s jobs report seemingly gave with one hand and took with the other. Perhaps Wednesday’s inflation data will change that but for now, gold traders appear quite uncertain about what lies ahead and therefore what it ultimately means for the yellow metal. They aren’t giving up easily but a hotter inflation number could change that.  

We are finally seeing the kind of bull market steepening in the US yield curve that marks a new stage in the economic cycle. This is typically positive for activity currencies and bearish for the dollar. The dollar may not fall quite as quickly as late last year, but the direction of travel looks clear. Commodity currencies should be favoured now.   Like many others we have been looking for a weaker dollar in the second half of this year but have been uncertain of timing. There is now a strong case that the softer US June CPI numbers have fired the starting pistol on the cyclical dollar decline. Importantly, we look for the June CPI data to presage a series of softer price data releases this year.  The Fed should welcome this news. Strong signs of US disinflation and bullish steepening of the US yield curve should be a EUR/USD positive. Positioning and Rest Of World growth prospects may not trigger the kind of 8% dollar drop seen last Nov-Dec, but the dollar should still decline. One last hike from the Fed, plus two more hikes from the European Central Bank should keep rate differentials supportive of EUR/USD.       USD/JPY: No need for intervention after all     USD/JPY has reversed sharply from 145 – an area where it looked like Tokyo was readying for FX intervention. Instead, it looks like investor positioning for a possible Bank of Japan policy tweak (28 July) and the softer US inflation data have foregone the need for intervention. A sustained move lower in USD/JPY will require some follow-up – i.e. either from the BoJ or US data. The reason why speculation has built over the 28 July meeting is that the BoJ also releases its Outlook Report containing new forecasts – i.e. whether the rise in CPI is sustainable. 145 could now prove a solid cap. We target 130 for year-end.    

  US inflation data takes Brent above $80 Chinese trade data disappoints again Momentum appearing to wane Oil prices are a little higher again in early trade, seemingly still buoyed by yesterday’s US inflation report, and are continuing to push for a convincing break above $80 in Brent crude. It is trading a little above $80 this morning and did at times yesterday, but rather than generating fresh momentum, it seems to instead be running into some difficulty. That would be understandable. After all, it’s rallied around 12% in two weeks, primarily on the back of the extension to the Saudi one million barrel cut to the end of August, alongside Russia’s 500,000 barrel export reduction. Some profit-taking at these levels wouldn’t be hugely surprising and may have come sooner if not for the US CPI data. What’s more, trade data from China overnight wasn’t exactly inspiring which may have dampened the rally a little. Chinese imports and exports slumped at a faster pace than expected in June in another sign of weakening global trade. We’ve seen this trend all year and clearly, conditions are not improving, quite the opposite. This will maintain pressure on the economy with domestic demand also disappointing, as seen by the weaker import numbers. Targeted stimulus may be needed sooner rather than later or the country’s once seemingly modest 5% growth target may be at risk of being missed. The breakout in Brent crude above the descending channel and above the 55/89-day simple moving average band was quite strong and it appeared to be building some momentum but there are signs that this is slipping today. The daily candle itself isn’t complete so I’m hesitant to comment on it but a close around where it currently lies is in theory bearish, being a shooting star candle.   Brent Crude Daily     The stochastic and MACD look ok at the moment on the daily chart, there aren’t any real red flags as far as they’re concerned. That’s less the case on the 4-hour and even the 1-hour charts which may point to a potentially corrective move in the short-term.   Brent Crude 4-Hour   Brent Crude 1-Hour   Either way, longer term this looks like a very bullish move. Breaking out of a two-month range on the back of supply cuts, weaker inflation readings, and the potential for softer landings for the economy. The China data is a concern but some stimulus could change people’s views on that front.        

Output cuts and inflation data continue to boost crude prices Temporary disruptions could add to the bullishness Potential resistance around $83-$84   Oil is trading relatively flat today but has made tremendous gains over the last couple of weeks and could still add to that over the coming sessions. The price has risen more than 13% from the lows on 28 June and, despite appearing to struggle at times yesterday, still has plenty of momentum. The break above $80 was very significant after multiple efforts by Saudi Arabia and its allies to manipulate the price to more sustainable levels, from their perspective. Temporary output disruptions, like those currently in Libya and Nigeria, could further lift prices in the short term as potential tightness in the market on the back of cuts and economic resilience boost demand.   Key Resistance Lies Ahead Brent could face an interesting test around $83-$84 if it keeps rallying, with the boost from US inflation data and Saudi/Russian cuts potentially giving it an additional boost, as well as the psychological lift from this week’s breakout.     The 200/233-day simple moving average has been a key zone of support and resistance previously and could prove to be so again. It hasn’t traded above here in more than a year so a break above would be significant. A move lower could draw attention back to $80 and whether we’ll get that confirmation of the initial breakout. A move below here wouldn’t necessarily be a particularly bearish move, with the 55/89-day SMA band around $76-$78 arguably more important, falling around the upper end of the descending channel. It could also fall around a key fib level depending where the price peaks first.       

Yesterday, the pair formed several good signals to enter the market. Let's analyze what happened on the 5-minute chart. In my morning review, I mentioned the level of 1.0870 as a possible entry point. Growth and false breakout of this level generated a sell signal, and the pair fell by more than 60 pips. During the US session, safeguarding the support level at 1.0808 and weak US data produced a buy signal. As a result, EUR/USD managed to compensate for all morning losses and rose by more than 50 pips.   For long positions on EUR/USD: Softer-than-expected preliminary US PMI data exerted downward pressure on the dollar and the euro strengthened in the second half of the day. Obviously, there's a lot of market manipulation, making the situation increasingly tense before the Jackson Hole symposium. Yesterday's data made it clear: if the Federal Reserve continues its tight policy stance, the economic situation will only worsen. This has further confused market participants, who were expecting hawkish statements from Fed Chair Jerome Powell. In the absence of EU reports in the first half of the day, I expect EUR/USD to trade within the channel. Therefore, it is advisable to trade on a dip following a false breakout near the low of 1.0849, which is in line with the bullish moving averages. An immediate resistance target is set at 1.0889, formed on Tuesday.   A breakout and a downward test of this range will strengthen demand for the euro, suggesting a bullish correction around 1.0928. The ultimate target is found at 1.0958, where I will be locking in profits. If EUR/USD declines and bulls are idle at 1.0849, the bear market will persist. Only a false breakout around the next support at 1.0827 will signal to buy the euro. I will initiate long positions immediately on a rebound from the low of 1.0804, aiming for an upward correction of 30-35 pips within the day.   For short positions on EUR/USD: The sellers lost all their advantage yesterday and now they need to start from the beginning. Today, to maintain the bearish momentum, sellers will have to assert their strength at the new resistance of 1.0889. The pair may test this level soon. The absence of economic reports will help the bears with a false breakout of this level and will lead to another descent towards the 1.0849 support. However, only a breakout below this range, followed by an upward retest, will generate another sell signal, paving the way to the low of 1.0827, where I expect big buyers to emerge in hopes of building the lower band of the new ascending channel. The ultimate target is seen at 1.0804, where I will be locking in profits. If EUR/USD moves upward during the European session and lacks bearish activity at 1.0889, the bulls may try to re-enter the market. In such a scenario, I would go short only when the price tests the new resistance at 1.0928 that was formed yesterday. Selling at this point is possible only after a failed consolidation. I will initiate short positions immediately on a rebound from the high of 1.0958, considering a downward correction of 30-35 pips within the day.     COT report: The COT (Commitment of Traders) report for August 15 shows a notable increase in long positions and a drop in short positions. These figures already factor in the crucial US inflation data, which brought back some buyers to the market. The Federal Reserve meeting minutes released last week also indicated that not all committee members are aligned with the idea of raising interest rates to combat inflation. This keeps the chances of the euro's recovery alive, especially following the Jackson Hole symposium happening later this week where Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak. His address might shed light on the central bank's future policy direction. It is important to note that the recent decline in the euro seems to be appealing to traders. The optimal medium-term strategy under current conditions remains buying risk assets on a dip. The COT report highlights that non-commercial long positions increased by 4,418 to stand at 232,466, while non-commercial short positions decreased by 5,634 to 72,603. Consequently, the spread between long and short positions surged by 1,125. The closing price was lower, settling at 1.0922 compared to 1.0981 the previous week.     Indicator signals: Moving averages: Trading is taking place around the 30-day and 50-day moving averages, indicating market uncertainty. Please note that the time period and levels of the moving averages are analyzed only for the H1 chart, which differs from the general definition of the classic daily moving averages on the D1 chart. Bollinger Bands If EUR/USD declines, the indicator's lower border near 1.0825 will serve as support.   Description of indicators: • A moving average of a 50-day period determines the current trend by smoothing volatility and noise; marked in yellow on the chart; • A moving average of a 30-day period determines the current trend by smoothing volatility and noise; marked in green on the chart; • MACD Indicator (Moving Average Convergence/Divergence) Fast EMA with a 12-day period; Slow EMA with a 26-day period. SMA with a 9-day period; • Bollinger Bands: 20-day period; • Non-commercial traders are speculators such as individual traders, hedge funds, and large institutions who use the futures market for speculative purposes and meet certain requirements; • Long non-commercial positions represent the total number of long positions opened by non-commercial traders; • Short non-commercial positions represent the total number of short positions opened by non-commercial traders; • The non-commercial net position is the difference between short and long positions of non-commercial traders.    

Asia Morning Bites US inflation report out tonight could see Asian markets mark time today.   Global Macro and Markets Global markets:  US stocks are up one day, down the next at the moment. Yesterday, it was time for some losses led by tech stocks following an Apple event to launch the iPhone 15. The S&P 500 dropped 0.57% while the NASDAQ lost 1.04%. This was actually in line with the steer from equity futures yesterday. But today, they are giving little away. Chinese stocks fell also. The Hang Seng was down 0.39% and the CSI 300 was down 0.18%. 2Y US Treasury yields nosed up 2.9bp to 5.02%, while the 10Y Treasury yield was marginally lower by 0.8bp taking it to 4.28%. EURUSD is slightly higher at 1.0758, but spent a lot of time yesterday exploring the downside before recovering. This hasn’t helped the AUD, which has been steady to slightly weaker over the last 24 hours, sitting at 0.6427 currently. Cable also slid yesterday and made a less robust recovery than the euro, leaving it at 1.2492 currently. And the JPY is also softer, rising to 147.126.  The PBoC’s recent browbeating of the market still seems to be keeping a lid on the CNY, which remains at 7.2923. We’d expect it to test the 7.30 level again in the coming days, though tomorrow’s data dump will need to be taken into account – we think it might be slightly less negative than in recent months…The KRW had a positive day, rising 0.28% to 1327.64, and the THB weakened 0.38% to 35.640, but there were few other notable movements in the rest of the Asia FX pack.   G-7 macro:  Today, we get August inflation data from the US. And the news will be mixed. Headline inflation will likely rise from 3.2% to 3.6%YoY - all the helpful base effects that helped lower inflation in the first half of the year are used up now, and the month-on-month rate at 0.6% (expected), is still far too high to result in anything other than an inflation increase. But it is exactly the opposite story for core inflation, which has been much stickier, but could now benefit from more helpful base effects, and the fact that most of the price increases are in the non-core food and energy sectors. We should see core inflation falling to 4.4% (consensus 4.3%) from 4.7% YoY. Exactly how the market takes this mix of data is difficult to judge in advance, and could come down to small deviations from the consensus numbers on both figures. Other than this, the UK releases a raft of production, trade, construction and monthly GDP data for July.   India: Trade balance data for August will likely show the deficit in the -USD20bn to -USD21bn range. Export growth has been on a slow but steady decline for a long time, and was -15.86%YoY in July. Looked at in USD levels terms, exports are still trending slightly lower, but the rate of annual decline should moderate to low single digits this month. Inflation data released yesterday evening came in at 6.83%, only slightly higher than our 6.7% forecast, and slightly lower than the consensus 7.1% estimate.   South Korea: The jobless rate unexpectedly declined to 2.4% in August (vs 2.8% July, 2.9% market consensus). The construction sector added jobs for the first time in six months but manufacturing shed jobs for a second month. With summer holidays underway, hotels and restaurant jobs gained. Rising pipeline inflation raised concerns that consumer prices could rise more than expected in the coming months. Import prices surged 4.4% MoM nsa (0.2% in July), the largest increase in 17 months, but due to base effects the YoY growth still fell -9.0%YoY (vs -13.6% in July). Weak currency and strong commodity prices are the two main reasons for the price increases. The KRW is hovering above the 1,300 level and oil prices continue to rise. We are concerned that consumer price inflation may rise more than expected. The tighter job market and rising prices will support the BoK’s hawkish stance. But we still don’t think this will push them to deliver additional hikes by the end of this year given sluggish exports and weak investment.   What to look out for: US CPI inflation and China data South Korea unemployment (13 September) Japan PPI inflation (13 September) India trade balance (13 September) US CPI inflation (13 September) Japan core machine orders and industrial production (14 September) Australia unemployment (14 September) ECB policy meeting (14 September) US initial jobless claims, PPI and retail sales (14 September) China medium term lending rate (15 September) Indonesia trade balance (15 September) China retail sales, industrial production (15 September) US University of Michigan sentiment (15 September)

The CFTC report published on Friday showed that long-term investors are bullish on the dollar. The weekly change was +3.6 billion, and the net short dollar position decreased to -6.9 billion. Among the major world currencies, only the yen has refrained from selling off, while all other currencies saw weekly changes in favor of the dollar. The US inflation data for August will be published on Wednesday. Rising oil prices may lead to a 0.5% m/m increase in overall inflation, which could fuel another Federal Reserve interest rate hike.   However, slowing wage growth could have a positive impact on consumer price growth in the services sector. At the moment, the markets are convinced that the Fed will take a break at the next meeting, the likelihood of a rate hike is only 7%, and the key meeting in this cycle will be in November, which is still far off. We believe that the US dollar is still the main favorite of the foreign exchange market, and investors will continue to buy because the market is convinced of the strength of the US economy. Although the greenback retreated from its previous highs on Monday, the other currencies look weaker. A possible rate hike by the European Central Bank is unlikely to strengthen the euro's position because weak economic data reduce the chances of decisive action by the ECB, and any sign of weakness on the part of the bank will be perceived by markets as another confirmation of the dollar's strength.   EUR/USD The ECB will hold its meeting on Thursday, where a final rate hike of 0.25% is expected. The markets still do not have a consensus on whether this hike will happen next Thursday or if the ECB willtake a pause until the next meeting. The high wage growth rates in the eurozone favor a rate hike. In the second quarter, wage growth was 5.6% y/y, even higher than the 5.4% in the previous quarter and exceeding the ECB's estimate of 5.3%, which was presented in June.   Accordingly, the threat to core inflation remains high, and it is expected to fall to 3% in the second half of 2024. ECB officials are sending mixed signals, and there is no unified position. Some hint at the need to take a pause, while others focus on high core inflation and urge not to stop. The European Commission has lowered its economic growth forecast for the eurozone by 0.3% for 2023 and 2024 to 0.8% and 1.4%, respectively. The inflation forecast for the current year has been reduced to 5.6%, but it has been raised to 2.9% for the following year. The European Commission believes that the ECB will raise rates by 0.25% on Thursday, claiming that the market is leaning toward this opinion.     The European Commission holds a pessimistic view of the prospects for eurozone economic growth, which does not contribute to euro demand. The value of the net long euro position fell by 1.6 billion to 18.2 billion during the reporting week. Net positioning continues to be bullish, and the trend favors selling the euro. The price is below the long-term average, which supports further euro depreciation, but the dynamics are neutral.     EUR/USD, as we suggested a week ago, broke below the lower band of the channel at 1.0764 and headed towards the local low of 1.0634. Traders will likely test the low; the question is whether the euro will break this support on the first attempt, or if a second wave will be needed. In case the euro continues to correct higher, we can expect a retracement to the resistance zone of 1.0790/0810. We consider this scenario less likely, as we believe that the euro will fall further, with the support zone of 1.0605/35 as the target. GBP/USD The pound has slightly recovered from its decline following hawkish comments from the Bank of England. Speaking in Canada, Monetary Policy Committee member Catherine Mann signaled she's likely to support further rate hikes as she sees persistent inflation harder to fight than a downturn. She also said it is a "risky bet", but it's better to make a mistake that can be corrected later, and this implies a call for further rate hikes. The labor market report for August was set to be published on Tuesday, with investors focused on the average earnings growth rate. It is expected that the 3-month measure will remain at 7.8%. Any deviation from the forecast could change rate expectations, potentially leading to increased volatility for the pound. The value of the net long pound position fell by 0.2 billion to 3.6 billion during the reporting week. Despite a fairly deep sell-off in recent weeks, net positioning continues to be bullish, which does not prevent the price from falling.   As expected, the pound successfully tested the support at 1.2545. There are almost no reasons for an upward reversal, and any potential corrective rise is limited by the resistance zone of 1.2545/65. We expect the bearish sentiment to persist. The goal is an update of the local low and a move below 1.2440, with the next target being 1.2290/2310. Here, the pound may find strong support. From a technical perspective, falling below this area would suggest the end of the long-term uptrend.  

It was a weak session in Asia as higher oil prices and UST yields sapped investors’ enthusiasm for risk. UST yields were pushed higher by concerns about US inflation ahead of the August CPI release later today. Indeed, a 10Y UST auction drew its highest yield since 2007. Asian technology shares were also hurt by a weak investor reception of Apple’s launch of its iPhone 15. At the time of writing, most Asian bourses as well as S&P 500 futures were trading in the red. Higher UST yields and risk-off trading led to a modestly stronger USD with the AUD and JPY leading the declines against the USD. G10 FX is trading cautiously and in tight ranges ahead of the US inflation data release later today.   USD: of (headline) inflation and head fakes Ahead of the US CPI data, our US economist is looking for the headline print to reaccelerate to 3.7% YoY in August, up from 3.2% previously (and above the consensus expectation of 3.6%). In contrast, core inflation is expected to slow down to 4.2% YoY in August, down from 4.7% in July. The mix of accelerating headline and decelerating core inflation highlights that the main driver of the latest price developments is the renewed rebound of energy prices. Fed Chair Jerome Powell signalled back in July that the August CPI is the final of the five key data points that will inform the outcome of next week’s policy meeting. In that, we believe that the Fed may decide to look past the revival of cost-push inflation and focus instead on the persistent drop of core inflation. If confirmed, today’s data could therefore confirm market expectations of a Fed pause in September. Turning to the FX market reaction, the USD will likely take its cue from the US rates markets. We further note that while today’s CPI print may not reignite the Fed rate hike expectations, it could still encourage investors to push back on their rate cut expectations and thus boost the USD rate appeal especially if the (headline) inflation print overshoots market expectations. In addition, the safe-haven USD could continue to draw support from the market’s fragile risk sentiment.

UK wage growth and US CPI set to slow   By Michael Hewson (Chief Market Analyst at CMC Markets UK)   European equity markets got off to a slow start to the week yesterday, closing modestly higher with the FTSE100 underperforming due to concerns over weak demand out of China.   US markets were also resilient with the S&P500 and Dow both eking out new highs for 2023, as investors looked cautiously towards this week's central bank meetings of the Federal Reserve, European Central Bank, and the Bank of England, and their respective outlooks for rate policy heading into 2024.     Asia markets have continued in the positive vein of yesterday with that momentum set to continue into today's European open.   With the Federal Reserve due to start its 2-day meeting later today, and the Bank of England set to decide on rates on Thursday, today's UK wages data and US CPI numbers could go some way to shaping how policymakers react when they deliver their guidance on monetary policy later this week.     We start with the latest UK wages numbers for the 3-months to October and where wages have been trending higher by more than 8% for the last 3-months if bonuses are included.   Some at the Bank of England have been fretting about this high level of wages growth but they really shouldn't be given how badly inflation has impacted the pay packets of consumers these past 2 hours.   All that is happening now is that some of the purchasing power that has been lost over the last few months is slowly being clawed back and for the most part will take years to recover back to pre-pandemic levels. The central bank needs to be careful about overreacting to a phenomenon that they were too slow in reacting to on the way in.     With food prices only just recently dropping below 10% for the first time in over a year it can hardly be a wage price spiral if consumers are finally seeing the price/wage ratio finally starting to turn positive in their favour. Expectations are for wages ex-bonuses to slow from 7.7% to 7.4%, which might not be enough to reverse the calls for further rate hikes from the 3 hawks on the MPC, of Mann, Haskel and Greene. Later this afternoon we'll get to see whether the slowdown we saw in US CPI during October has continued into November.   US inflation fell to 3.2% in October, down from 3.7% reversing a trend that had seen inflation fall to 3% in June, before gaining ground in subsequent months.   Core CPI on the other hand has been steadier, slowing at a more modest pace and coming in at 4%. More importantly, super core inflation which the Fed monitors closely also slowed, and with the risk of a US government shutdown postponed until January next year, the economic risks to the US economy appear to have diminished further.   There has been some concern that the resilience of the US economy may delay the return to the 2% target, however judging by the latest PPI data there is little sign of inflationary pressure in respect of company's costs. These also slowed sharply in October declining -0.5%, dragging final demand down from 2.2% to 1.3%, in a sign that we could see further downside in US CPI, with the potential to slip below 3% before the end of the year.     Headline CPI for November is forecast to slow to 3.1%, with core prices remaining steady at 4%.       EUR/USD – holding above the 200-day SMA for now, stopping short last week at 1.0724, with a break below 1.0700 targeting the prospect of further losses toward the November lows at 1.0520. We need to see a move back through 1.0830 to stabilise. GBP/USD – tight range but holding above the 200-day SMA for now, with only a break below 1.2460 signalling a broader test of the 1.2350 area. Resistance currently at 1.2620 area.  EUR/GBP – still range trading between the 0.8590 area and the lows at 0.8545/50. While below the 0.8615/20 area the risk remains for a move towards the September lows at 0.8520, and potentially further towards the August lows at 0.8490. USD/JPY – after last week's test of the 200-day SMA at 142.50 we've seen a solid rebound with the move above 146.20 arguing for a move back towards 148.20. FTSE100 is expected to open 13 points higher at 7,558 DAX is expected to open 51 points higher at 16,845 CAC40 is expected to open 18 points higher at 7,569