Weekly Forex Market Followup (December 5th - December 9th 2011)

Key Fundamental Forex Events for the Week of December 5th
through December 9th The following table lists the key economic
data and other events that came out during the week of December 5th
through December 9th, with release times displayed for the GMT time
zone. The list also indicates how much each release deviated from
the market consensus forecast upon release, as well as what the
affected major currency pair or pairs did after each event or set
of events. Monday, December 5th 12:30am AUD ANZ Job Advertisements
0.0% versus last -0.7%. The AUD rose. 9:30am GBP Services PMI 52.1
versus 50.6 expected. The GBP rose. 3:00pm USD ISM
Non-Manufacturing PMI 52.0 versus 53.6 expected. The USD mostly
fell. Tuesday, December 6th 3:30am AUD Cash Rate 4.25%, as
expected. 3:30am AUD RBA Rate Statement. Governor Glenn Stevens
noted that, "The sovereign credit and banking problems in Europe,
to which European governments are still seeking to craft a full
response, are likely to weigh on economic activity there over the
period ahead. Financial markets have experienced considerable
turbulence, and financing conditions have become much more
difficult, especially in Europe. The AUD fell. 8:00am CHF Foreign
Currency Reserves 229.3B versus last 242.7B. 8:00am GBP Halifax HPI
-0.9% versus last 1.2%. The GBP fell. 8:15am CHF CPI -0.2% versus
0.1% expected. The CHF fell. 1:30pm CAD Building Permits 11.9%
versus 3.2% expected. 2:00pm CAD BOC Rate Statement noted that, "In
Canada, the economic expansion is proceeding largely as projected,
although the expected rotation of demand is somewhat slower than
had been anticipated. Household spending remains solid and business
investment robust. Net exports remain weak, reflecting modest U.S.
demand and ongoing competitiveness challenges, particularly the
persistent strength of the Canadian dollar. Despite increased
global risk aversion, financial conditions in Canada remain very
stimulative and private credit growth is strong." 2:00pm CAD
Overnight Rate 1.00%, as expected. 3:00pm CAD Ivey PMI 59.9 versus
55.1 expected. The CAD rose. Wednesday, December 7th 12:30am AUD
GDP 1.0% versus 1.2% expected. The AUD rose. 9:30am GBP
Manufacturing Production -0.7% versus -0.1% expected. The GBP rose.
8:00pm NZD Official Cash Rate 2.50%, as expected. 8:00pm NZD RBNZ
Press Conference. Deputy Governor Grant Spencer said that, "Covered
bonds can provide banks with access to a stable funding source,
which helps support system stability during times of severe
disruption in international markets." 8:00pm NZD RBNZ Rate
Statement. Governor Alan Bollard noted that, Global developments
are having some negative impact on New Zealand, though to date it
has been limited. Business confidence has declined and investment
spending is likely to remain weak for some time." The NZD was
unchanged. Thursday, December 8th 12:30am AUD Employment Change
-6.3K versus 10.6K expected. 12:30am AUD Unemployment Rate 5.3%
versus 5.2% expected. The AUD fell. 12:00pm GBP Asset Purchase
Facility 275B, as expected. 12:00pm GBP Official Bank Rate 0.50%,
as expected. The GBP fell. 12:45pm EUR Minimum Bid Rate 1.00%, as
expected. 1:15pm CAD Housing Starts 181K versus 203K expected. The
CAD fell. 1:30pm EUR ECB Press Conference. President Mario Draghi
stated that, "The intensified financial market tensions are
continuing to dampen economic activity in the euro area and the
outlook remains subject to high uncertainty and substantial
downside risks. In such an environment, cost, wage and price
pressures in the euro area should remain modest over the
policy-relevant horizon." The EUR fell. 1:30pm USD Weekly Initial
Jobless Claims 381K versus 397K expected. The USD rose overall.
Friday, December 9th 1:30am CNY CPI 4.2% versus 4.6% expected. All
Day EUR EU Economic Summit. German Chancellor Merkel stated that,
"This is a breakthrough to a union of stability. The fiscal union
will be developed step by step. We will use the crisis as a chance
for a new beginning." The EUR rose. 9:30am GBP PPI Input 0.1%
versus 0.3% expected. The GBP rose slightly. 1:30pm CAD Trade
Balance -0.9B versus 0.8B expected. The CAD rose slightly. 1:30pm
USD Trade Balance -43.5B, as expected. 2:55pm USD Preliminary
University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment 67.7 versus 65.6
expected. The USD fell. Technical Recap for the Majors This Week
EURUSD: Forecast: Mildly LowerActual: Mildly lower from a
1.3422 open to a 1.3352 close. USDJPY: Forecast: Mildly
HigherActual: Mildly lower from a 78.03 open to a 77.65 close.
GBPUSD: Forecast: Mildly LowerActual: Mildly lower from a
1.5624 open to a 1.5623 close. AUDUSD: Forecast: Mildly
LowerActual: Mildly lower from a 1.0252 open to a 1.0172 close.
USDCAD: Forecast: Mildly HigherActual: Mildly higher from a
1.0165 open to a 1.0222 close. NZDUSD: Forecast: Mildly
LowerActual: Mildly lower from a 0.7809 open to a 0.7720
close.