FX Daily Wrap Up

The British Pound took a bit of a dive against the world today off of disappointing PPI numbers. UK PPI inflation gauges printed essentially within expectations, with input costs declining by –1.1% and output inching a bit higher to 2.2%. But the news was basically neutral for the Pound, as markets continue to forecast that the Bank of England will stand pat on rates for the time being, continuing to observe the impact of the last hike to 5.25% in January. Against the US Dollar, the initial drop lead to a 155-point US gain, but the Pound recouped much of the loss through slow trading and is finishing out the US trading sessions at 1.9324 – only 20 pips below the open. While the GPB/USD held steady, the major winner today was the Swiss Franc, which fought and gained over 200 points against the Pound to close at 2.3650. The Commerce Department’s retail sales report for February is due at 7:30 CST tomorrow, and its importance has been built up among fundamental traders. Economists are predicting a 0.3 percent rise in sales last month, but the projection is a bit of a mixed bag. Purchases of autos and consumer goods are expected to spoil as poor weather weighs on maxed out spending habits, while gasoline prices will likely spur a rise in the numbers as higher fuel prices lifted the overall value of sales. A surprise from this indicator could very well trigger a much bigger move. David Hilgeman, XPRESSTRADE Analyst