Forex news from the European trading session – 1 April 2021
Headlines:
Markets:
– EUR leads, AUD lags on the day
– European equities higher; E-minis up 0.3%

Latest data released by Challenger, Gray, and Christmas Inc
The drop in job cuts here is the lowest monthly total since July 2018 so there are some signs that layoffs are slowing down and that US-based employers are able to get back on their feet again – job cuts led by the aerospace/defense industry so far this

But the bloc is also considering maintaining current production cuts as well
This isn’t too different from the earlier story but it reaffirms that there are still a bit of two-way risks going into the meeting today. The past half-hour has seen oil pare most of its earlier gains as WTI falls from $60.10 to

Tough to find reasons to be bullish EUR/USD at the moment
The vaccine/recovery divergence story is arguably one of the key factors but also with the Fed allowing a steeper for longer narrative and the ECB not willing to pursue that path (Lagarde yesterday even challenged the market to do so), yields differential is another key

Pfizer remarks in updated data on its COVID-19 vaccine
The headline will make for comfortable reading amid fears that the virus variants will throw a wrench in the works on the global recovery. That said, the trial sample size in South Africa is rather small i.e. 800 participants only.

Forex news from the European trading session – 31 March 2021
Headlines:
Markets:
– CAD leads, JPY lags on the day
– European equities mixed, S&P 500 futures up 0.1%

France contemplates returning to a national lockdown
This could be a prelude of later in the day. With Germany also having extended its lockdown past Easter (and likely to continue further), Q2 is looking very much like a return to Q4 for Europe.

Latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association for the week ending 26 March 2021
–  -2.5%
– Market index 730.8 vs 747.0 prior
– Purchase index 297.3 vs 301.9 prior

It has been a quiet session for the most part in Europe so far
Nasdaq futures are up 0.4%, while S&P 500 futures are flat and Dow futures are seen down 0.1%. European equities are little changed after a mildly softer open with the DAX holding just above 15,000 following its record close yesterday.

The White House releases a statement ahead of Biden’s speech later today
But still, it won’t be music to the ears of big corporates and as the debate ensues in Congress, expect the whispers and musings to have an impact on market sentiment.