Traders are bracing themselves for another busy week ahead as volatility looks set to remain high. A mixture of key data releases, geopolitical concerns, and central bank calls is combining to hit markets at fragile levels. In addition to the above, earnings season in the US is really picking up this week with some big tech companies due to report quarterly data.
Here’s our usual day-by-day breakdown of the major economies’ scheduled risk events:
The week kicks off with a muted event calendar, but traders are still expecting lively sessions ahead after the volatile action of the previous week. The main data focus of the day will come in the Asian session when China updates the market on its Prime Loan rates. Investors once again hope for some stimulus. The other two sessions are relatively quiet, although Euro traders will be paying close attention to comments from ECB President Christine Lagarde later in the day.
There’s little on the calendar in the APAC session, but we have a plethora of Flash Services and Manufacturing PMI numbers throughout the rest of the day. Data is set to come from France, Germany, the Eurozone, the UK, and the US. New Home Sales and the Richmond Manufacturing Index numbers are also due out later in the New York session.
One of the key data points of the week is due early in the Asian session with the Australian CPI numbers set for release. The London session is relatively quiet with just the German Ifo number due out. The New York session could be livelier with Retail Sales numbers from Canada and Durable Goods from the US set to hit the market early in the day.
A quieter start to the trading day is expected in Asia on Thursday with both Australian and New Zealand markets closed for ANZAC Day. There’s little else on the calendar for the remainder of the session and indeed into the European day. However, the US session should see some more action. The weekly unemployment claims numbers are due out early in the day, alongside the latest GDP update, and later the Pending Home Sales data is also set to hit the screens.
The week looks set to finish on a high note with two major events bookending the day. First up in the Asian session is the latest rate call from the Bank of Japan, which could see some strong moves in the market given the level of the Yen. The London session is set to be quieter, although Swiss traders will be paying close attention to comments from the SNB’s Thomas Jordan early on. The week’s major data release is scheduled for the final session with the Core PCE Price Index update due out early in the US session. Acknowledged as the Fed’s favoured inflation indicator, we could see strong moves in the market leading into the weekend.
