NEWS / Foreign Exchange

European Forex Recap

• Dow Jones Industrial average closed Wednesday??™s session higher by 13.93 points at a record high of 13,089-89

• The Reserve Bank of New Zealand raises New Zealand interest rates by 0.25% to 7.75%. Kiwi on the news spiked from 0.7450 to a high of 0.7490 before crashing back to 0.7425. The RBNZ quoted as saying that the NZ$ is at exceptionally and unjustifiably high levels and some analysts feel this could signal that they may intervene at some stage to halt the rise of the NZ$ (5.00pm EST)

• FX rates as of 11.00pm EST GBP/USD 2.0029/34  EUR/USD 1.3642/45  USD/JPY 118.55/58  USD/CHF 1.2045/49  USD/CAD 1.1153/58  AUD/USD 0.8342/46  NZD/USD 0.7472/76

• Cable higher from 2.0005 to 2.0050 with a Middle Eastern name rumored to be the buyer (1.20am EST)

• German real wholesale sales in March was +2.6% m/m +2.0% y/y (1.50am EST)

• UK Nationwide Building Society House Price index for April shows prices +0.6% m/m +10.2% y/y. This was the biggest rise in house prices since December. Little cable reaction to the news and bounced in the 2.0050??™s (2.00am EST)

• German Import prices in March were +0.6% m/m +0.9% y/y from +0.5% m/m +0.8% in February. Export prices were +0.2% m/m +2.1% y/y (2.00am EST)

• Nikkei 225 closed Thursday??™s session higher by 195.01 at 17,429-17

• German GfK consumer morale for May was up to 5.5 from 4.4 in April (2.10am EST)

• French manufacturing sentiment was higher in April by 2 points at 111, which is the highest level in 6 years (2.45am EST)

• Euro-yen trading higher moving from 162.20 to 162.55, making a new lifetime high.  Dollar-yen higher on the back of the Euro-yen move breaking through 1119.00 triggering stops and making a high of 119.21 (5.05am EST)

• Kiwi breaks a 2 month trend line and plummets from 0.7440 to 0.7405 (5.20am EST)

• Sterling-yen profit takers behind the move lower in cable as the currency breaks 2.0000 to 1.9985 (5.35am EST)

• FX rates as at 6.00am EST GBP/USD 1.9967/72  EUR/USD 1.3605/08  USD/JPY 119.21/24  USD/CHF 1.2077/81  USD/CAD 1.1179/84  AUD/USD 0.8291/95  NZD/USD 0.7390/94 

Economic data due out later today

8.30am ESR US weekly initial jobless claims for the week ending April

7.00pm EST Japan Bank of Japan??™s decision on interest rates

7.30pm EST Japan CPI for March

7.30pm EST Japan Unemployment rate for March

Ranges since 5pm EST

GBP / USD:                 1-9967             2-0052

EUR / USD:                 1-3602             1-3653

USD / JPY:                  118-52             119-28

USD / CHF:                 1-2032             1-2081

USD / CAD                 1.1142             1.1180

AUD / USD                 0-8288             0-8360

NZD / USD                 0-7390             0-7490