USD/CAD up another 0.7% on the day to 1.2921
Commodity currencies are continuing to be pressured this week and there is little reprieve now across the board when you look at the charts.

Forex news from the European trading session – 19 August 2021
Headlines:
Markets:
– JPY leads, AUD lags on the day
– European equities lower; S&P 500 futures down 0.8%

Early signs of a reopening in global air travel?
Traveling from Asia to Europe or vice versa these days is an extremely rare event unless there is a certain need to do so, as most air travel has been restricted.

Australian treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, remarks
Given how Australia has been very strict with lockdown measures, even a 70% vaccination rate may not necessarily rule out a spread of infections – however minimal it may be.

Australian treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, remarks
That’s a striking remark on how the future looks like for the Australian economy, as Frydenberg says that there should be „no expectation“ by states/territories should for emergency COVID-19 support payments for employees affected by lockdowns once the country gets to 70% vaccination rate.

At the highs this month, the S&P 500 has doubled in value from the depths of the pandemic in March last year
An interesting chart put out by Bloomberg shows that the S&P 500 might be headed towards a deeper correction some time in the future, after having gained by double its value since bottoming out

Not a whole lot of action to kick start the day
European indices are easing a little after a steadier start to the session, down around 0.1% to 0.3% across the board. US futures have also given up slight gains, with S&P 500 futures marked lower now by 0.1% as the risk mood keeps more tepid.

Latest data released by Eurostat – 18 August 2021
The preliminary report can be found . No change to the initial estimates as euro area annual headline inflation keeps above the 2% target of the ECB.

GBP/USD down 0.4% to below 1.3800 on the day
The only thing I can really point towards is a technical move with GBP/USD keeping lower after failing to breach its 200-hour moving average at around 1.3867 yesterday, and also with GBP/JPY breaking below the 3 August support at 151.17.

As confirmed by Japanese prime minister, Yoshihide Suga
The existing measures cover Tokyo and five other prefectures (Osaka, Chiba, Saitama, Kanagawa, and Okinawa) with an expansion to seven other prefectures that were previously under a quasi-state of emergency – that being Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Shizuoka, Kyoto, Hyogo and Fukuoka.