Forex Major Currencies Outlook (May 08, 2017)

However, there were downward revisions to earlier reports. The jobless rate improved from 4.5% to 4.4% instead of rising to the estimated 4.6% reading while average hourly earnings increased 0.3% as expected. Only the labor market conditions index is due today and a rise from the earlier 0.4 figure could be bullish for the dollar.

EUR

The euro gapped up again over the weekend as the French elections confirmed a clear win for Macron, which would mean stability for France and the euro zone. On Friday, euro zone retail PMI improved from 49.5 to 52.7 as well. German factory orders data is due today and a 0.7% uptick is eyed. Sentix investor confidence data is also lined up and an improvement from 23.9 to 25.3 is expected.

GBP

The pound held on to most of its gains against its peers, except against the Loonie. There were no reports out of the UK economy on Friday but traders are still feeling optimistic after the industry PMI readings turned out stronger than expected. Halifax HPI is due today but traders could just price in expectations ahead of the BOE Super Thursday.

CHF

The franc had a mixed run as it reacted mostly to currency-specific events. SNB foreign currency reserves ticked up from 683B CHF to 696B CHF, indicating that the central bank might be acting to keep the currency weak. There are no reports due from the Swiss economy today.

JPY

The yen gapped down against the European currencies once more as risk-taking is present. However, these gaps were quickly filled as traders booked profits almost instantly. Japan's consumer confidence index is due today and a rise from 43.9 to 44.3 to reflect a pickup in optimism is expected.

Commodity Currencies (AUD, NZD, CAD)

The comdolls had a mixed run as the Aussie was still reeling from weaker iron ore prices while the Loonie was able to benefit from slightly stronger than expected data. Canada added 3.2K jobs in April versus the estimated 20K gain while the unemployment rate improved from 6.7% to 6.5%. The Ivey PMI climbed from 61.1 to 62.4, a notch up from the 62.3 consensus. Earlier today, Australia reported a surprise 13.4% slump in building approvals and China's trade balance is due next.

By Kate Curtis from Trader's Way