Spreads
Spreads
Spreads
Spreads
Spreads
EUR/USD (4 Hours)
The EUR/USD pair reached a psychological resistance level of 1.1000, its highest in more than two months. The US Dollar Index (DXY) dropped to around 101.53 due to market expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will pause its policy tightening. The rise in the major currency pair is due to the US inflation slowing as expected, with headline inflation only increasing by 0.1% and annual inflation easing from 6% to 5%. Core inflation, however, increased from 5.5% to 5.6% due to persistent rent prices.
The Fed believes that US inflation will continue to soften and reach the middle of 3% this year before reaching desired levels in 2024. The market is keenly watching Friday’s US Retail Sales data, which is expected to contract by 0.4%. More rate hikes from the European Central Bank are anticipated due to stubborn inflation caused by a labor shortage and higher oil prices.
From a technical perspective, the EUR/USD price is continuing to rise and create a strong push to the upper band in the Bollinger band. We have adjusted our support level to 1.0962 as the market is expected to break higher today with the release of PPI data which is also an indicator for the US inflation data. The RSI has risen above 50 (at 69), indicating a potential for further upward movement.
Resistance: 1.1026, 1.1052
Support: 1.0962, 1.0921
XAU/USD (4 Hours)
Gold prices initially surged to a high of $2,028.31 per troy ounce after the release of the US Consumer Price Index, which indicated that price pressures continued to recede in March, easing concerns about inflation. However, prices retraced gains and are now hovering around $2,007. The weaker US dollar across the FX market and positive stock market sentiment fueled by modest inflation figures are increasing expectations that the Federal Reserve will hike rates one more time before pausing.
The central bank has adopted a more dovish stance amid a banking crisis that ended up with the collapse of two local banks and dragged alongside Swiss giant Credit Suisse. The inflation figures have somehow let the Fed stay comfortable with a more conservative stance, diminishing the risk of a recession. Investors are not expecting any surprises from the upcoming release of the Federal Open Market Committee Meeting Minutes, which should repeat the dovish tone from Chair Jerome Powell and, if anything, trigger another round of dollar sell-off.
From a technical perspective, the price of XAU/USD continues to rise and reach the upper band of the Bollinger band. The market is currently waiting for the release of the PPI which is also an indicator of the US inflation data. We adjusted our key support level to $2,010. As long as this level is maintained, the XAU/USD uptrend will remain intact. The RSI keeps moving above the 50 levels, indicating that there is potential for gold to continue to rise.
Resistance: $2,026, $2,039
Support: $2,010, $1,997
