Both Canada and the U.S. will be printing their labor market reports during the U.S. session so I thought we should visit USD/CAD’s chart for potential trade opportunities.
Currency Snapshot:
Fresh Market Headlines & Economic Data:
- Australian Industry Group (AIG) services PMI falls into deeper contraction (from 48.7 to 47.4)
- Japanese workers took home lower wages in 2019
- Japan household spending falls more than expected in December
- FOMC’s Quarles: Interest rates in ‘good place’ despite ‘notable risks’
- 2-year inflation expectation in New Zealand higher in Q1 2020
- RBA’s Lowe: risks of further rate cuts outweigh the benefits unless unemployment rate deteriorates
- Aussie softens as RBA cuts growth forecast
- 41 more passengers on cruise ship quarantined off Yokohama test positive for coronavirus
- Oil climbs after Russia backs possible output cuts to counter coronavirus impact on demand
Upcoming Potential Catalysts on the Forex Calendar:
- Japan’s leading indicators at 5:00 am GMT
- Germany’s industrial production at 7:00 am GMT
- Germany’s trade balance at 7:00 am GMT
- France’s industrial production at 7:45 am GMT
- France’s trade balance at 7:45 am GMT
- Switzerland’s foreign currency reserves at 8:00 am GMT
- U.K.’s Halifax house price index at 8:30 am GMT
- Italy’s retail sales at 9:00 am GMT
- Canada’s labor market numbers at 1:30 pm GMT
- U.S. NFP reports at 1:30 pm GMT. Read our NFP preview if you’re planning on trading the release!
What to Watch: USD/CAD
USD/CAD is trading in what looks like an ascending triangle on the 1-hour time frame.
And if that’s not major enough, you should also note that the pair hasn’t traded 100 pips above the 1.3300 major psychological resistance since June 2019.The short-term consolidation points to a more-volatile-than-usual reaction for the pair when Canada and the U.S. both print their labor market reports later today.
If Uncle Sam’s headline NFP comes in as strongly as what this week’s ADP report suggested, then we could see USD/CAD break above the triangle and maybe make a play for the 1.3380 high seen back in September.
If Canada paints a much healthier job market, or if the dollar sees some profit-taking from its intraweek gains near the end of the week, then USD/CAD could break below the trend line and find support at the 200 SMA or the 1.3200 previous area of interest.