Key Fundamental Forex Events for the Week of August 6th through August 10th

The following table lists the key economic data and other events that came out during the week of August 6th through August 10th, with release times displayed for the GMT time zone.

The list also indicates how much each release deviated from the market consensus forecast upon release, as well as what the affected major currency pair or pairs did after each event or set of events.

Monday, August 6th

• All Day CAD Bank Holiday
• 2:00pm USD Fed Chairman Bernanke said that, "even though some key aggregate metrics--including consumer spending, disposable income, household net worth, and debt service payments — have moved in the direction of recovery, it is clear that many individuals and households continue to struggle with difficult economic and financial conditions." The currency fell overall.

Tuesday, August 7th

• 5:30am AUD Cash Rate 3.50%, as expected. The currency fell.
• 5:30am AUD RBA Rate Statement noted that, "Financial market sentiment has been subject to large swings in response to developments in the euro area and the evolving outlook for global economic growth. The outcome of the Greek elections in June, and various announcements by European policymakers since then, helped to boost confidence, but only temporarily.”
• 8:00am CHF Foreign Currency Reserves 406.5B versus last 364.9B expected. The currency rose.
• 8:15am CHF CPI -0.5%, as expected.
• 9:30am GBP Manufacturing Production -2.9% versus -3.9% expected. The currency rose.
• 1:30pm CAD Building Permits -2.5% versus -3.5% expected. The currency rose.
• 3:00pm CAD Ivey PMI 62.8 versus 51.7 expected.
• 7:30pm USD Fed Chairman Bernanke said that, "Interest rates are low because our economy is still in a fragile recovery, lower rates are intended to restore more normal levels of employment and growth." The currency fell overall.

Wednesday, August 8th

• 12:50am JPY Current Account 0.77T versus 0.75T expected. The currency rose.
• 10:30am GBP BOE Inflation Report noted that, "A year ago inflation was rising and heading towards 5%. It has now fallen to within touching distance of the 2% target. The big picture in today’s Report is of a further decline in inflation, as external influences fade and domestic cost pressures ease, and a gradual recovery in output. Nevertheless we are navigating rough waters and storm clouds continue to roll in from the euro area." The currency rose.
• 11:45pm NZD Employment Change -0.1% versus 0.4% expected. The currency fell.
• 11:45pm NZD Unemployment 6.8% Rate versus 6.5% expected.

Thursday, August 9th

• 2:30am AUD Employment Change 14.0K versus 10.3K expected. The currency rose.
• 2:30am AUD Unemployment Rate 5.2% versus 5.3% expected.
• 2:30am CNY CPI 1.8% versus 1.7% expected.
• 4:19am JPY Monetary Policy Statement noted that, "Overseas economies have shown moderate improvement, though limited in scope; on the whole, they still have not emerged from a deceleration phase. In global financial markets, some nervousness continues to be seen, mainly due to concern about the European debt problem." The currency fell.
• 4:19am JPY Overnight Call Rate <0.10%, as expected.
• 8:39am JPY BOJ Press Conference BOJ Governor Shirakawa said that, "Uncertainty about the European debt problems remains strong though there was some progress such as financial support to Spain."
• 1:30pm CAD Trade Balance -1.8B versus -0.9B expected. The currency rose.
• 1:30pm USD Trade Balance -42.9B versus -47.4B expected. The currency rose overall.
• 1:30pm USD Weekly Initial Jobless Claims 361K versus 371K expected.

Friday, August 10th

• 2:30am AUD RBA Monetary Policy Statement noted that, "The ongoing turmoil in the euro area is affecting Graph A1 other economies around the world through its impact on financial markets, business and household confidence, and trade." The currency fell.
• 4:00am CNY Trade Balance 25.1B versus 35.1B expected.
• 9:30am GBP PPI Input 1.3%, as expected. The currency rose.
• 1:30pm CAD Employment Change -30.4K versus 10.2K expected. The currency rose.
• 1:30pm CAD Unemployment Rate 7.3%, as expected.

Technical Recap for the Majors This Week

EURUSD:

Forecast: Lower
Actual: Lower from a 1.2394 open to a 1.2293 close.

USDJPY:

Forecast: Mildly Higher
Actual: Mildly lower from a 78.61 open to a 78.24 close.

GBPUSD:

Forecast: Mildly Lower
Actual: Mildly higher from a 1.5633 open to a 1.5679 close.

AUDUSD:

Forecast: Higher
Actual: Mildly lower from a 1.0575 open to a 1.0561 close.

USDCAD:

Forecast: Mildly Lower
Actual: Mildly lower from a 1.0012 open to a 0.9914 close.

NZDUSD:

Forecast: Higher
Actual: Mildly lower from a 0.8184 open to a 0.8120 close