The Week Ahead – Stats to Put the GBP and the USD in the Spotlight. Data from China Will also Be in Focus

On the Macro

It’s a busier week ahead on the economic calendar, with 58 stats in focus in the week ending 15^th October. In the week prior, 44 stats had been in focus.

For the Dollar:

A relatively quiet start puts JOLT’s job openings in focus ahead of inflation figures on Wednesday.

While job openings are material, inflation remains the key area of focus…

On Thursday, jobless claims and wholesale inflation will also influence.

Retail sales and consumer sentiment figures wrap things up on Friday, with retail sales key.

In the week ending 8^th October, the U.S Dollar Index rose by 0.03% to 94.067.

For the EUR:

It’s a quiet week on the economic data front.

ZEW Economic Sentiment figures for the Eurozone and Germany will be in focus on Tuesday.

The focus will then shift to Eurozone industrial production and trade data due out on Wednesday and Friday.

On the inflation front, member state finalized inflation figures for September are also due out in the week.

Barring marked revisions from prelim figures, however, the numbers should have limited impact on the EUR.

For the week, the EUR fell by 0.23% to $1.1569.

For the Pound:

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

Claimant counts and unemployment figures will provide the Pound with direction on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, GDP, industrial and manufacturing production and trade will also be in focus, however.

Expect plenty of interest in the numbers as the markets look to second guess whether the BoE is ready to curb inflation…

The Pound ended the week up by 0.51% to $1.3615.

For the Loonie:

It’s a quiet week ahead on the economic calendar, with the Canadian markets closed on Monday.

Manufacturing sales and wholesale sales figures for August will be in focus on Thursday and Friday.

With little else for the markets to consider, expect the numbers to influence.

Market risk sentiment and influence of economic data from China on crude oil prices will also be key, however.

On the oil front, OPEC and the IEA’s monthly reports will need monitoring.

The Loonie ended the week up 1.39% to C$1.2472 against the U.S Dollar.

Out of Asia

For the Aussie Dollar:

It’s another relatively quiet week.

Business and consumer sentiment figures will draw attention in the week.

Key, however, will be September employment figures due out on Thursday. With lockdown measures still in effect, the markets will be looking to assess the impact on labor market conditions.

The Aussie Dollar ended the week up by 0.70% to $0.7309.

For the Kiwi Dollar:

It’s another quiet week ahead.

Electronic card retail sales on Tuesday and business PMI numbers on Friday will be in focus.

While the stats will provide the Kiwi Dollar with direction, expect economic data from China to have a greater impact in the week.

The Kiwi Dollar ended the week down by 0.13% to $0.6939.

For the Japanese Yen:

Finalized industrial production figures for August are due out on Thursday.

We don’t expect the numbers to influence, however.

The Japanese Yen fell by 1.07% to ¥112.24 against the U.S Dollar.

Out of China

It’s a relatively busy week ahead on the economic calendar.

Mid-week, trade data for September will provide riskier assets with direction. Following some weak stats out of China, a marked pickup in both imports and exports would be needed to ease market concerns over the economic outlook.

In Thursday, inflation figures will also influence, however…

The Chinese Yuan ended the week up by 0.02% to CNY6.4438 against the U.S Dollar.

Geo-Politics

Nothing new to consider in the week ahead, with China continuing to be the key area of focus.