Forex Tips & Daily Analysis

Usual Effect More hawkish than expected = Good for currency; Frequency Monthly; FF Notes This is a "Tentative" event because the statement is not issued if the rate doesn't change (except under extreme conditions). If the statement is not issued this event will be removed from the calendar immediately following the release. If issued, the Tentative mark will be removed; Acronyms Bank of England (BOE), Monetary Policy Committee (MPC); Why Traders Care It's one of primary methods the MPC uses to communicate with investors about monetary policy. It contains the outcome of their vote on interest rates, commentary about the economic conditions that influenced their vote, and most importantly, clues on the outcome of future votes;

Due to speak at the "Credit Market Turmoil of 2007-08: Implications for Public Policy" conference luncheon, in Chicago. Federal Reserve FOMC members vote on where to set the nation's key interest rates and their public engagements are often used to drop subtle clues regarding future monetary policy;

The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Estimate is a prediction for the past month's official GDP using statistical projection techniques. NIESR is one of the UK's oldest independent economic research institutes and their estimates are widely reported in the press.

Measures the number of new jobs created in the previous month. A rising trend has a positive effect on the nation's currency. The number of new jobs being created is one of the most important indicators of the economy's health because consumer spending, which is highly correlated with labor conditions, makes up a large portion of GDP. This report is the first of the month that relates to labor conditions, making it susceptible to big surprises

Measures the percentage of the total work force that is unemployed and actively seeking employment. A falling trend has a positive effect on the nation's currency. Working people tend to spend more, and consumer spending is a major driver of the economy. However, unemployment usually draws little attention because traders view it as a lagging indicator.

Measures overall economic health by combining ten leading indicators including average weekly hours, new orders, consumer expectations, housing permits, stock prices, and interest rate spreads.

Change in the price of homes financed by HBOS;

Measures the value of new purchase orders placed with domestic manufacturers for durable and non-durable goods.

Measures Interest rate at which banks lend balances held at the BOE to other banks; Usual Effect Actual > Forecast = Good for currency; Frequency Monthly; FF Notes When there is a change in rates the MPC will also issue a statement. Rate shifts are usually priced in the market and thus overshadowed by the MPC statement which is focused on the future; Acronyms Bank of England (BOE), Monetary Policy Committee (MPC); Also Called Interest Rates, BOE Rate; Why Traders Care Short term interest rates are the paramount factor in currency valuation - traders look at most other indicators merely to predict how rates will change in the future; Derived Via The 9 members of the MPC vote on where to set the rate. The individual votes are published 2 weeks later in the MPC Meeting Minutes;

Measures The interest rate on the main refinancing operations that provide the bulk of liquidity to the banking system; Usual Effect Actual > Forecast = Good for currency; Frequency Monthly; FF Notes The rate shift is usually priced in the market and thus overshadowed by the ECB press conference held 45 minutes later. Acronyms European Central Bank (ECB); Also Called Refi Rate; Why Traders Care Short term interest rates are the paramount factor in currency valuation - traders look at most other indicators merely to predict how rates will change in the future; Derived Via The 6 members of the ECB and the 15 governors of the Euro area central banks vote on where to set the rate. The split of votes is not publicly revealed;

Measures annualized number of new residential building permits issued during the previous month; It's an excellent gauge of future construction activity because obtaining a permit is one of the first steps in constructing a new building

Speaker ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet and Vice President Lucas Papademos; Usual Effect More hawkish than expected = Good for currency; Frequency Monthly, about 45 minutes after the rate release; FF Notes There are two parts to the press conference: first Trichet reads a prepared statement (a text version is made public at the start), then the conference is open to press questions. Since the questions are not known beforehand they can make for some unscripted moments that lead to heavy market volatility; Why Traders Care It's the primary method the ECB uses to communicate with investors. It covers in detail the factors that affected the most recent interest rate decision, the overall economic outlook, inflation, and most importantly, clues regarding future monetary policy;

Annualized change in labor efficiency when producing goods and services, excluding the farming industry;

Annualized change in the price businesses pay for labor, excluding the farming industry

Measures the number of individuals who filed for unemployment insurance for the first time during the past week. A rising trend has positive effect on the nation currency. This is the nation's earliest economic data. The market impact fluctuates from week to week - there tends to be more focus on the release when traders need to diagnose recent developments, or when the reading is at extremes;

The Ivey Purchasing Manager's Index (PMI) measures the activity level of purchasing managers from all sectors of the economy, with a reading above 50 indicating expansion. A rising trend has a positive effect on the nation's currency. To produce the index, purchasing managers are surveyed on a number of subjects including employment, production, new orders, supplier deliveries, and inventories. Traders watch these surveys closely because purchasing managers, by virtue of their jobs, have early access to data about their company’s performance, which can be a leading indicator of overall economic performance.

Measures the change in the number of cubic feet of natural gas held in underground storage during the past week; It influences the price of petroleum products which affects inflation, but also impacts growth as many industries rely on oil to produce goods;

Measures Level of a diffusion index based on surveyed construction companies; Usual Effect Actual > Forecast = Good for currency; Frequency Released monthly, on the fifth business day after the month ends; Next Release Oct 6, 2008 FF Notes Above 50.0 indicates industry expansion, below indicates contraction; Derived Via Survey of about 200 construction companies which asks respondents to rate the relative level of business conditions including employment, production, new orders, prices, supplier deliveries, and inventories; Also Called Performance of Construction Index; Acronyms Australian Industry Group (AIG);