The Week Ahead – Economic Data, Monetary Policy, and China in Focus

On the Macro

It’s a quieter week ahead on the economic calendar, with 42 stats in focus in the week ending 12^th March. In the week prior, 70 stats had been in focus.

For the Dollar:

It’s a quieter week ahead.

February inflation figures are due out on Wednesday and Friday along with consumer sentiment figures on Friday.

JOLT’s job openings and weekly jobless claims figures will also draw attention on Thursday, however.

With market sensitivity to inflation heightened in recent weeks, expect plenty of influence from the numbers.

The Dollar Spot Index ended the week up by 1.22% to 91.985.

For the EUR:

It’s a busier week ahead on the economic data front.

German industrial production figures are due out on Monday ahead of finalized 4^th quarter GDP numbers for the Eurozone on Tuesday.

Barring another revision, the GDP figures, expect Germany’s industrial production figures to have the greater impact.

On Tuesday, German trade data will also draw attention, with the markets focused on demand.

In the 2^nd half of the week, industrial production figures for the Eurozone are due out.

Finalized inflation figures for Germany and Spain are also due out but will likely have a limited impact.

On the monetary policy front, the ECB monetary policy decision and press conference on Thursday will be the main event.

With market jitters over a possible shift in policy stemming from reinflation, expect the press conference to be key. Lagarde will need to assure the markets that there will be no shift in policy.

The EUR ended the week down by 1.33% to $1.1915.

For the Pound:

It’s another relatively quiet week ahead on the economic calendar.

In the first half of the week, retail sales figures for February are due out on Tuesday. With little else for the markets to consider, the BRC numbers will influence.

The markets will then need to wait for GDP, manufacturing and industrial production figures on Friday for more direction.

Trade data is also due out but will likely have a muted impact on the Pound.

The Pound ended the week down by 0.66% to $1.3841.

For the Loonie:

It’s a quieter week ahead on the economic calendar.

February employment figures and January wholesale sales figures are due out on Friday.

Employment change figures for February will be the key driver on the day.

On the monetary policy front, the Bank of Canada is also in action on Wednesday.

With the markets expecting the BoC to stand pat, the BoC press conference will be the main area of focus. Once more, inflation will likely be a hot topic…

The Loonie ended the week down by 0.62% to C$1.2659 against the U.S Dollar.

Out of Asia

For the Aussie Dollar:

It’s a quiet week.

Business and consumer confidence figures for February and March are due out on Tuesday and Wednesday.

While business investment is also key to an economic recovery, expect consumer sentiment figures to have the greatest impact.

The Aussie Dollar ended the week down by 0.26% to $0.7686.

For the Kiwi Dollar:

It’s another quiet week ahead.

Electronic card retail sales figures are due out on Wednesday ahead of Business PMI numbers on Friday.

With little else for the markets to consider, both data sets will influence.

The Kiwi Dollar ended the week down by 0.91% to $0.7167.

For the Japanese Yen:

It is another quiet week ahead.

2^nd estimate GDP numbers for the 4^th quarter are due out on Tuesday.

Barring a marked revision from 1^st estimates, however, the stats should have a limited impact on market risk sentiment.

At the end of the week, BSI Large Manufacturing Conditions Index numbers for the 1^st quarter will draw interest.

The markets will be looking for manufacturing conditions to have improved for the 1^st quarter…

The Japanese Yen ended the week down by 1.63% to ¥108.31 against the U.S Dollar.

Out of China

It’s a busier week ahead. Over the weekend, trade data for February is due out and will set the tone.

Expect plenty of interest in the numbers following some disappointing private sector PMIs.

Weak figures and we could see concerns over the Chinese economic recovery begin to hit the markets.

On Wednesday, inflation figures for February will also draw attention.

With the National People’s Congress continuing from last Friday, chatter from the Chinese government will also influence market risk sentiment.

The Chinese Yuan ended the week down by 0.36% to CNY6.4970 against the U.S Dollar.

Geo-Politics

U.S Politics

Iran and the Middle East will remain a key area of focus, particularly following last week’s report on the Khashoggi murder.

For Joe Biden and the Democrats, this could prove to be the first test. A breakdown in U.S – Saudi relations would raise questions over stability in the region.

While the Iran nuclear agreement will be a main area of focus, U.S – China relations also remains a key focal point for the markets.