| Time | Country | Event | Period | Previous value | Forecast | Actual |
|---|
| 01:30 | Australia | Unemployment rate | April | 3.9% | 3.9% | 4.1% |
| 01:30 | Australia | Changing the number of employed | April | -5.9 | 23.7 | 38.5 |
During today's Asian trading, the US dollar consolidated against major currencies after yesterday's collapse caused by US inflation data, which strengthened the likelihood of easing the Fed's monetary policy.
The US Dollar Currency Index (DXY), which tracks the dynamics of the dollar against six currencies (euro, swiss franc, yen, canadian dollar, pound sterling and swedish krona) fell by 0.05% to 104.30 (the lowest value since April 10). Yesterday, the index fell by 0.81%, as data showed that the consumer price index rose by 0.3% in April after increasing by 0.4% in March and February. In annual terms, CPI growth slowed to 3.4% from 3.5% in March. Economists had predicted that the index would grow by 0.4% over the month and by 3.4% year-on-year. Optimism that the Fed is close to cutting rates was also boosted by U.S. retail sales data, which unexpectedly remained unchanged last month as higher gasoline prices led to lower spending on other goods. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, markets see a 2.7% probability of a 25 basis point rate cut at the Fed meeting in June, a 32.9% probability of a rate cut in July, and a 73.2% probability of monetary policy easing in September.
The yen rose another 0.4% against the US dollar, to 154.25, after jumping 1.42% yesterday. As a result, USD/JPY hit its lowest level since May 6 as the gap between US and Japanese bond yields narrowed. Experts said that in order for USD/JPY to fall below the important psychological level of 150, market participants will need to see a clearer signal from the Fed that it will begin to actually cut rates. Meanwhile, data showed that Japan's GDP fell by 0.5% QoQ in Q1 after remaining unchanged in Q4. Economists had expected the economy to contract by 0.4%. On a yearly basis, GDP slumped 2.0% - again missing estimates for a decline of 1.5% after stabilization in the 4th quarter. Capital expenditure dropped 0.8% QoQ after rising 1.8 percent in the previous quarter, while external demand fell 0.3% QoQ after gaining 0.2%. Private consumption shed 0.7% QoQ after dropping 0.4% in Q4.