Forex

The International Monetary Fund downgraded forecasts for the World’s GDP for the current year

Asian and European trading sessions:

Euro: The EUR / USD pair fell below $ 1.3300 during the Asian session. The euro rose against the dollar, as investors were waiting for votes in the U.S. House of Representatives. The U.S. House of Representatives will have to vote today for an automatic increase of the level of debt ceiling until May 18 under the initiative of the Republicans. As long as investors wait the decision, they invest in risky assets which stimulates the growth of the euro. The EUR / USD pair rose to $ 1.3354 during the European session.

British Pound: The GBP / USD pair fell to the lows of $1.5800. Then the pound currency rose on released today data which showed that the number of applications for unemployment benefits fell last month to 12,1K. The news was a big surprise to many economists, who projected that the value will increase to 0.5K. The Claimant Count Rate for December remained unchanged and amounted to 4.8% which was in line with estimates. At the same time, the unemployment rate, which is calculated according to ILO and called ILO Unemployment Rate, fell during September and November to 7.7%, compared to 7.8 % forecasted. The GBP / USD pair after hitting the highs of $ 1.5882 level fell to $1.5844 during the European session.

Japanese Yen: The currency continued its two-day growth due to the forecast that deflation in Japan was observed in December. The decline in consumer prices in Japan, accordingly the consensus of forecasts, would accelerate to the most significant level since August in December to 0.2 % yearly from 0.1% in November (excluding fresh food) The USD / JPY pair fell by updating week low during the Asian session. Also, the yen grew up against almost all its rivals on speculations that the measures that will be announced by the Bank of Japan would not be enough to stimulate economic growth and weaken National currency. The USD / JPY pair fell to Y88.66 during the European session.

Swiss franc: The currency rose against the dollar after the report showed that the confidence among Swiss investors rose in January, showing the fourth monthly increase, and reached its highest level since May 2012, which added signs of the economy’s stabilization. The index of investors’ expectations, which is used to assess the potential economic development for six consecutive months, rose in January to a level of -6.9, compared with -15.5. At the same time, the index, which measures current economic conditions rose to the level 16 vs. 6.6 before.

Australian dollar: The Australian dollar fell after the publication of data on inflation in the country. The data showed that the consumer price index in Australia increased by 0.2% compared with the previous three months versus the expectation of the analysts of growth by 0.4%.

American trading session:

Euro: The euro fell to one-week low against the dollar after the International Monetary Fund downgraded forecasts for the World’s GDP for the current year. It was expected that the growth of world GDP in 2013 will be at  3.5%,however, compare with the October’s forecast it was expected increase by 3.6%.The  IMF expects Eurozone’s  GDP contraction by 0.2 % this year, rather than growth.

Canadian Dollar: The IMF also lowered the growth forecast of growth of GDP of Canada to 1.8%. The Canadian dollar currency fell against most currencies after the Bank of Canada's stated its readiness to mitigate the monetary policy. The Bank of Canada left its key interest rate unchanged at 1 %. The statement of the Bank of Canada revealed that the slowdown in growth of the Canadian economy was "more pronounced" than it was expected by the central bank. It also announced in forecast that the economy will reach full load in the second half of 2014.

Gold: The pressure on the price of gold had a message from the International Monetary Fund which downgraded forecasts for the World’s GDP for the current year due to the still remained recession in the euro zone and weak growth of Japanese economy. The cost of February gold fell to 1683.50 dollars per ounce on the COMEX today.

Oil: The WTI March futures fell to 94.96 dollars a barrel on the NYMEX from its four-month high after the International Monetary Fund cut its outlook for global economic growth. There were also speculations that U.S. crude inventories would be increased in the next report’s publication.