A more dovish Fed has been a tailwind for risk trades and even after some late profit-taking yesterday, it doesn’t dull the shine from earlier in the week. European indices are maintaining a good mood today with the DAX and CAC 40 both having hit fresh record highs during the week and US indices are also at the highs for the year.

The S&P 500 is on course for a seventh straight week of gains, up 2.5% this week, and during that run, the index has gained by nearly 15%:

It is now less than 2% away from a fresh record high with futures pointing to a 0.3% gain at the moment ahead of the open later.

Despite there being notable headwinds for the global economy and the inflation monster not quite defeated just yet, stocks are on their way to scale to new heights once more. If you ever need more evidence that the stock market is not the economy, this would be it.

This article was written by Justin Low at www.forexlive.com.

• The Fed left interest rates unchanged as expected with a shift in the statement that
  indicated the end of the tightening cycle.
• The Summary of Economic Projections showed a
  downward revision to Growth and Core PCE in 2024 while the Unemployment Rate
  was left unchanged. Moreover, the Dot Plot was revised to show three rate cuts
  in 2024 compared to just two in the last projection.
• Fed Chair Powell didn’t push back against the strong dovish pricing
  and even said that they are focused on not making the mistake of holding rates
  high for too long, which implies a rate cut coming soon.
• The US CPI this week came in line with expectations
  with the disinflationary progress continuing steady. This was also confirmed by
  the US PPI the day after where the data missed
  estimates.
• The labour market has been showing signs of
  weakening lately but we got some strong releases recently with the US Jobless Claims and the NFP coming
  in strongly.
• The latest ISM Manufacturing PMI missed expectations falling further into
  contraction, while the ISM Services PMI beat forecasts holding on in expansion.
• The market expects the Fed to start cutting rates
  in Q1 2024.

AUD

• The
  RBA left interest rates unchanged as expected at the last meeting with
  the central bank maintaining the usual data dependent language.
• The
  recent Monthly CPI report missed expectations across
  the board which is a welcome development for the RBA.
• The
  RBA Governor Bullock has been leaning on a more hawkish side recently, although
  she remains optimistic on the future outlook.
• The
  latest labour market report beat forecasts across the
  board although the unemployment rate rose more than expected.
• The
  wage price index surprised to the upside as wage
  growth in Australia remains strong.
• The
  recent Australian PMIs fell further into contraction for
  both the Manufacturing and Services sectors.
• The
  market expects the RBA to start cutting rates in Q4 2024.

AUDUSD Technical Analysis –
Daily Timeframe

On the daily chart, we can see that AUDUSD recently
broke above the key trendline
following the surprisingly dovish FOMC meeting. This has opened the door for a
rally into the 0.68 resistance where we
can expect the sellers to step in with a defined risk above the level to target
a drop back into the 0.65 support.

AUDUSD Technical Analysis –
4 hour Timeframe

On the 4 hour chart, we can see that the pair
started to consolidate just above the recent high at the 0.6680 level. This is
where the buyers are piling in with a defined risk below the level to position
for another rally into the 0.68 handle. The sellers, on the other hand, will
want to see the price breaking lower to invalidate the bullish setup and
position for a drop into the 0.65 support.

AUDUSD Technical Analysis –
1 hour Timeframe

On the 1 hour chart, we can see more
closely the rangebound price action between the 0.6680 support and the 0.6730
resistance. This gives us a clear playbook as a break to the upside should lead
to a rally into the 0.68 handle, while a break to the downside could trigger a
selloff into the 0.65 support.

Upcoming Events

Today the only notable event on the agenda is the
release of the US PMIs.

This article was written by FL Contributors at www.forexlive.com.

The euro area trade surplus widened slightly in October as exports grew by 0.6% while imports declined by 0.2% on the month, both on a seasonally adjusted basis. Comparing the year-to-date data, exports were seen down 0.2% while imports are down some 12.7% on an unadjusted basis compared to the January to October period last year.

This article was written by Justin Low at www.forexlive.com.