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Major European PMI Manufacturing data misses expectations; German IFO Business Confidence falls for the first time in 7 months Economic Data (RU) Russia Gold & Forex Reserve w/e May 18th: $514.3B v $518.8B prior (DE) Germany Q1 Final GDP Q/Q: 0.5% v 0.5%e; Y/Y: 1.7% v 1.7%e; GDP WDA Y/Y: 1.2% v 1.2%e (DE) Germany Q1 Private Consumption: 0.4% v 0.2%e; Government Spending: 0.2% v 0.3%e; Domestic Demand: -0.3% v 0.0%e; Capital Investment: -1.1% v -0.3%e; Construction Investment: -1.3% v -0.4%e; Exports: 1.7% v 0.9%e; Imports: 0.0% v 0.3%e (CH) Swiss Apr Trade Balance (CHG): 1.3B v 1.9Be; Real Exports M/M: -0.9% v +0.2%e; Real Imports M/M: 2.6% v 5.9% prior (FI) Finland Apr PPI M/M: -0.1% v +0.4% prior; Y/Y: 1.4% v 1.4% prior (FI) Finland Apr Preliminary Retail Sales Volume Y/Y: -2.0% v ...

Yen gains after BOJ stands pat; World Bank cuts China outlook, April lending looks weak; EUR falls on Papademos "grexit" mention Economic Data (JP) BANK OF JAPAN (BOJ) LEAVES TARGET RATE RANGE UNCHANGED BETWEEN 0.0% TO 0.10% (AS EXPECTED); Keeps economic assessment unchanged; Maintains asset purchase fund at ¥70T (JP) JAPAN APR MERCHANDISE TRADE BALANCE TOTAL: -¥520B V -¥471BE; ADJUSTED: -¥480B V -¥617BE (US) NORTH AMERICA SEMI EQUIPMENT INDUSTRY APR SALES BOOK TO BILL RATIO: 1.10 V 1.13 PRIOR (3RD CONSECUTIVE MONTH ABOVE PARITY, 1st decline in 7 months) (AU) AUSTRALIA APR DEWR INTERNET SKILLED VACANCIES M/M: -0.8% V -0.5% PRIOR (4-month low) (AU) AUSTRALIA MAR WESTPAC LEADING INDEX M/M: 0.4% V 0.0% PRIOR (AU) AUSTRALIA MAR CONFERENCE BOARD LEADING INDEX M/M: +0.2% V 0.0% PRIOR (SG) ...

Asian markets are waiting heavy data during the upcoming week starting with the Bank of Japan decision and the release of HSBC flash Manufacturing PMI for China. The Bank of Japan has left rates between 0.0% and 0.10%, in order to support the nation’s growth against the current instability and although inevitable will not change rates, investors await any move with more stimulus as the USDJPY falls below 80 levels again. The Japanese economy showed signs of recovery where last week the decline in machinery orders slowed in March, as well as recording more-than-expected expansion during the first quarter to begin exiting deflation that faced the nation’s economy since 2011. The BOJ is expected to keep the monetary policy unchanged and keep monitoring markets closely with a slight ...

Fundamental Analysis EUR "We expect euro-region inflation to normalize in 2013" - Michael Schubert, an economist at Commerzbank AG Inflation in the seventeen nation bloc eased to 2.6 per cent in March from 2.7 per cent the previous month, said the European Union’s statistics office in Luxembourg on Wednesday. USD "Uncertainty about Greece and the effects a potential exit out of the euro would have on Europe, the global economy and the financial system in general is driving investors out of stocks into safe havens" - Markus Huber, head of German sales trading at ETX Capital The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 0.44%, or 5.86 points, to 1,324.80. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 0.26%, or 33.45 points, to 12,598.55. GBP Unemployment figures are a "welcome step in the right ...

Higher Yielding Currencies Maintain Bearish Trend Higher yielding currencies, namely the EUR and AUD, remained bearish during European trading yesterday, as fears that Greece will have to leave the euro-zone led to risk aversion in the marketplace. Investors are now worried about what the possible effects of a Greek exit from the euro-zone would be for other indebted countries, including Spain and Italy. Today, traders will want to note that there is a bank holiday in France, Germany and Switzerland. That being said, news out of the US may lead to market volatility. The Unemployment Claims figure and Philly Fed Manufacturing Index are both forecasted to show US economic growth. If true, the USD could see gains during the afternoon session. Economic News USD - Manufacturing Data Could ...

The euro spent most of the day slightly above recent three-month lows hit against the US dollar and Japanese yen. Greece's inability to form a new government has raised the prospects that a new election will be held in the coming weeks, which has resulted in additional risk aversion in the marketplace. Turning to today, traders will want to pay attention to a batch of US data, including the PPI figure and the Prelim UoM Consumer Sentiment. Both indicators are considered valid indicators of overall economic health and have the potential to create market volatility before markets close for the week. Should any of the data come in above expectations, the USD may be able to see some upward movement against the yen today. Economic News USD - Dollar Turns Bearish vs. GBP The dollar turned ...

The results of Greek parliamentary elections held over the weekend kept the euro low against virtually all of its main rivals throughout yesterday's trading session. Investor concerns about Greece's new government and how it will act toward tough austerity measures imposed on the country brought the euro down to a 3 ½ year low against the British pound and a three-month low against the US dollar. Turning to today, euro-zone news is once again forecasted to impact the markets. The German Industrial Production figure and a speech from the ECB President have the potential to create significant volatility. Economic News USD - USD Takes Slight Losses against Main Currency Rivals After seeing significant gains when markets opened for the week, the US dollar staged a minor downward correction ...

A disappointing US jobs report resulted in the safe-haven US dollar sliding against the Japanese yen while rallying against riskier currencies like the AUD and EUR to close out last week's trading session. Turning to today, elections held in France and Greece over the weekend are forecasted to generate significant market volatility. Any indication that Greece could back away from recent austerity measures as a result of the election could result in the euro extending its current bearish trend. Economic News USD - US Jobs Report Causes USD/JPY to Tumble Last Friday's US Non-Farm Payrolls figure came in at 115K, well below the forecasted 173K. The news represented the third month in a row of declining hiring in the US, and resulted in renewed speculation that the Fed may initiate a new ...

Major European Services PMI again disappoints; Focus now on US April Non-Farm Payroll report Economic Data (EU) ECB: €983M borrowed in overnight loan facility v €638M prior; €805.7B parked in deposit facility v €803.1B prior (RU) Russia Narrow Money Supply (RUB): 6.90T v 6.91T prior (SE) Sweden Apr Services PMI: 48.6 v 52.6 prior (First contraction since Nov) (ES) Spain Apr Net Unemployment M/M: -6.6K v -15.0Ke (UK) Apr Halifax House Prices M/M: -2.4% v -0.8%e; 3M/Y: -0.5% v +0.4%e (ES) Spain Apr Services PMI: 42.1 v 45.4e (10th straight of contraction) (CH) Swiss Mar Real Retail Sales Y/Y: 4.2% v 1.1%e (SE) Sweden Mar Service Production M/M: 0.9% v 0.4% prior; Y/Y: 2.8% v 1.5%e (IT) Italy Apr PMI Services: 42.3 v 43.7e (FR) France Apr Final PMI Services: 45.2 v 46.4e (DE) ...