NEWS / Foreign Exchange

Trading likely will remain quiet today

Yesterday's U.S. economic data was mixed. Initial jolbess claims declined by 4,000 last week, bringing the overall number of claims to their lowest level in more than a month. The four-week moving average of claims, which smooths out some of the volatility inherent in any weekly series, suggests that the labor market remains solid. On the other hand, the Conference Board's leading economic indicator index declined 0.5% in February. However, yields on U.S. Treasury securities rose a few basis points yesterday as perhaps bond traders started to have second thoughts about the FOMC's statement the previous day. Trading in currency markets was generally quiet with the greenback strengthening a tad versus most major currencies.

Trading likely will remain quiet today. The only item of note on the docket is data on existing home sales in February. The downturn in the nation's housing market is well known by now, so the outturn probably needs to be significantly different from market expectations to have a marked effect on major dollar exchange rates. In any event, the consensus forecast anticipates that existing home sales fell by 2.5% in February relative to the previous month.