USD

Yesterday's risk-off mood helped the Greenback climb over 0.60% against its major trading partners and has held firm near that level this morning as the Dollar Index looks to stay on track for its biggest weekly gain since February. With the scheduled meeting between President Biden and top US congressional leaders now postponed to early next week, today's consumer sentiment release will be a primary focus for traders this morning. Expectations are for a modest decline in the index to 63 in May – down from 63.5 in April. Another data point worth noting is the University of Michigan's Survey of Consumers, which provides a five-year inflation expectation. Last month's inflation gauge was 3% for April, the highest since November 2022.

EUR

It's another down day for the Euro, now sitting near one-month lows - on pace for four losing days out of five this week. EUR/USD is currently down over 1% on the week as the pair's recent tests of the one-year high have each failed. Despite a lack of Eurozone data on the calendar today, inflation numbers out of Spain and France were released earlier this morning. However, the market impact of each was negligible, as all numbers aligned with market expectations.

GBP

The UK's GDP for the first quarter showed moderate growth, in line with market expectations, with a 0.1% expansion quarter-on-quarter and a 0.2% increase year-over-year. However, there was a contraction of 0.3% in March compared to the previous month, which was worse than anticipated. Overall, the growth rate was viewed positively regarding the UK's recovery from the pandemic. Despite challenges in various sectors, strong performance in manufacturing helped offset those setbacks. Following the release of the GDP report, the Pound stabilized today after experiencing a nearly 1% loss against the Dollar after the Bank of England's rate hike decision.

CAD

After suffering a nearly 0.9% loss yesterday, its most significant one-day drop in almost two months, the Loonie has stabilized this morning – although it is still pacing for its largest weekly loss in nearly a month.   Weaker oil prices and US jobless claims sparked a risk-off move to the Greenback and were primary catalysts for the Loonie's dismal day. 

The next key date for USD/CAD traders comes next Tuesday as Canadian inflation and manufacturing data, along with US Retail Sales, headline next week's busy economic calendar.

MXN

The Mexican Peso begins the day in the red once again after posting a 0.15% loss against the Dollar yesterday. Today's fall is on the heels of big misses on Mexican industrial output data this morning. 

March's monthly output figure showed a 0.9% decline, while markets expected just a 0.2% fall. The year-on-year number did not fare much better, showing a gain of just 1.6% against an expected jump of 2.7%. Despite the recent setbacks, the Peso is still on pace for a second-straight winning week – barring a significant selloff before the close.

BRL

The Brazilian Real rallied yesterday to finish 0.28% stronger against the Dollar, despite the broad USD strength. With BRL now on pace for a third-consecutive winning week and the April high in sight, traders will look to see any reaction from this morning's IPCA inflation release. 

The indicator showed month-on-month inflation rose 0.61% in April – down from 0.71% in March but still above an expected 0.54%. Despite coming in higher than expected, the slowing pace of inflation will likely only fuel the government's campaign for the Bank of Brazil to begin easing its current monetary policy. 

CNY

The Yuan scraped two-month lows earlier this morning as a string of negative economic data releases out of China put CNY sellers in the driver's seat. With USD/CNY down around 0.70% on the week, and the 2023 lows now in sight, Monday's retail sales and industrial production numbers out of China will become all the more critical for the pair. Current expectations are for major jumps in both numbers, with April retail sales expected to climb 20.1% year-on-year.