Jobless Numbers The Focus
02-09-2011
All eyes will be on the Jobless numbers coming from the U.S. today. The broad markets continued to turn cautious on Thursday and Wall Street turned in a negative day. The Non Farm Employment Change numbers will be published at 12:30 GMT and investors who are around to participate will get one more chance to express their own sentiment about economic conditions before going into the long holiday weekend from the States. Trading volumes have continued to be light and investors are likely to be pondering what will take place within the next two weeks when the broad markets return to full trading. Gold continues to stay in a consolidated high value, which underscores the amount of skepticism that is still prevalent. Even as the U.S. turned in a slightly better ISM Manufacturing PMI result on Thursday investors showed that continue to have a rather cautious outlook about economic prospects.
While the Jobless numbers today will be the focus, investors will continue to monitor the European financial situation which remains far from being solved. Clarity remains tough to grasp for investors and this lack of transparency regarding Sovereign Debt and banking problems continues to keep European bourses sputtering. Fears of contagion have not been put to rest. The EUR slipped versus the USD on Thursday and finds itself nearing its lower values within its range. The Single Currency however continues to get rather backhanded support from the U.S. while the Federal Reserve lets the idea of another possible round of quantitative easing linger. Economic data from Europe was less than stellar yesterday and there is a growing concern that a recession is coming to the continent.
The GBP continued to walk in the shadow of the EUR on Thursday and it slipped against the USD. The Nationwide HPI proved negative yesterday and the U.K. has done little to show that it is about to achieve any real growth. The Sterling is near the lower end of its range against the USD and it should be watched closely. Construction PMI statistics will be released today.
The AUD remains stubbornly strong and is particularly interesting taking into context that the global economic outlook appears to be worsening. The AUD may face headwinds in the coming weeks if data comes in more negative. The price of Gold this morning is around 1829.00 USD an ounce. While the precious metal resonates for the AUD it is not the only commodity that has impetus. Grains have done well the past week on international harvest concerns and this may be a factor in keeping the AUD well positioned. Traders are likely to find opportunities in the AUD in the coming weeks if economic figures bring volatility into the Forex markets.
The JPY remained locked in a tight range on Thursday and appears stuck in the mud as investors dig into positions. Trading volumes will have to be taken into consideration today. Even though the Jobless numbers are coming many investors will try to get out of the doors early in the States and this could bring some volatility into the session early on as the equity markets open.
