Forex News from InstaForex

[IFX Matthias]

Dollar Gaining Ground On Strong Consumer Sentiment Data

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The dollar is climbing against all of its major competitors at the end of the trading week.

The stronger than expected increase in U.S. consumer confidence helped to assure investors of recovery in the U.S. economy, following the release of some weak data in recent days.

Consumer sentiment in the U.S. has seen a substantial improvement in the month of May, according to a report released by Thomson Reuters and the University of Michigan on Friday, with the consumer sentiment index rising to its highest level in nearly six years.

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[IFX Matthias]

Japan Data On Tap For Monday

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Japan is scheduled to release a batch of data on Monday, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.

On tap are final March figures for the leading and coincident indexes, plus April numbers for machine tool orders, convenience store sales, department store sales and Tokyo condominium sales.

In addition, the Cabinet Office will release its monthly economic report for May.

The leading and coincident indexes are expected to see little change from the preliminary reading that suggested scores of 97.6 and 93.3, respectively.

Machine tool orders plummeted 24.1 percent on year in March, while convenience store sales eased 0.4 percent, department store sales added 3.9 percent and condominium sales surged 48.4 percent. New Zealand will see the April results for its Performance of Services index; in March, it came in at 55.4.

Thailand will provide gross domestic product numbers for the first quarter of 2013; in the previous three months, GDP was up 3.6 percent on quarter and 18.9 percent on year.

Hong Kong will announce its unemployment rate for April, with forecasts suggesting 3.4 percent - easing from 3.5 percent in March.

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[IFX Matthias]

Yen Weakens Against Majors

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The Japanese yen declined against other major currencies in the early Asian session on Tuesday.

The yen is worth 99.97 against the loonie, 102.65 against the greenback and 106.00 against the franc.

The yen also reached a 5-day low of 83.76 against the kiwi, 4-day lows of 132.29 against the euro and 156.50 against the pound.

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[IFX Matthias]

Japan Trade Deficit Y879.936 Billion In April

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Japan saw a merchandise trade deficit of 879.936 billion yen in April, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday.

That missed forecasts for a shortfall of 620.6 billion yen following the downwardly revised deficit of 364.0 billion yen in March.

Exports were up 3.8 percent on year, also missing forecasts for a gain of 5.4 percent after adding 1.1 percent in the previous month. Imports climbed an annual 9.4 percent versus expectations for 6.9 percent following the 5.6 percent gain a month earlier.

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[IFX Matthias]

U.S. Dollar Climbs Against Majors

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The U.S. dollar gained ground against other major currencies in the early Asian session on Thursday.

The greenback reached as high as 103.56 against the yen, closer to 4-1/2-year high of 103.73 set on Wednesday.

The greenback advanced to a 3-day high of 1.2823 against the euro area currency, reversing from yesterday's multi-day low of 1.2997.

The greenback approached 1.5013 against the pound, a level not seen since March 14. On the upside, 1.49 is seen as the next resistance level for the greenback.

The U.S. currency rose to 0.9817 against the franc, not far from its 9-1/2-month high of 0.9838 hit yesterday.

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[IFX Matthias]

S.korea Won Halts Slide But Caution Stays, Bonds Fall

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The won stood at 1,127.6 per dollar at 0030 GMT, just above 1,128.7 at the end of local trade on Thursday, when the South Korean currency fell 1.3 percent as an equity selloff around the world sparked a flight to safer assets.

Bond futures fell as concerns about the equity selloff eased and South Korea's central bank chief warned of risks from the future unwinding of massive monetary stimulus by the world's major central banks.

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[IFX Matthias]

Dollar Little Changed Ahead Of The Long Weekend

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The dollar is little changed in comparison to its major competitors on Friday. With equity markets adding to their recent weakness, investors appear hesitant to take a position ahead of the long holiday weekend.

After reporting a sharp drop in new orders for manufactured durable goods in the previous month, the Commerce Department released a report on Friday showing that durable goods orders rebounded by more than anticipated in the month of April.

The report said durable goods orders surged up by 3.3 percent in April after tumbling by a revised 5.9 percent in March. Economists had expected orders to climb 1.1 percent compared to the 5.7 percent drop that had been reported for the previous month.

The Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) is a more stable union today than it was a year ago, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said Thursday. Also "markets are fully confident that the euro is a strong and stable currency," he said in a speech in London.

Speaking on the deep financial and economic interconnectedness between Europe and the UK, Draghi said Europe needs "a more European UK" as much as the UK needs a more British Europe.

Eurozone's economic activity will likely stabilize sooner rather than later, supported by the gradually improving consumer confidence and the boost to purchasing power coming from low inflation, IHS Global Insight Chief UK and European Economist Howard Archer said.

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[IFX Matthias]

The Dollar dipped Against the Yen in Early Asian Trade

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The dollar dipped against the yen in early Asian trade on Monday after marking its worst week in a year on Friday, as volatility in Japanese stocks and bonds pulled it well away from its highest level in 4-1/2 years.

The greenback last bought 101.13 yen, dropping 0.1 percent from Friday, when it scraped a trough of 100.68 on Friday and closed 1.9 percent down on the week.

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[IFX Matthias]

Japan Corporate Service Prices Dip 0.4% In April

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An index measuring corporate service prices in Japan was down 0.4 percent on year in April, the Bank of Japan said on Tuesday, standing at 96.1.

That missed forecasts for a decline of 0.2 percent, which would have been unchanged from the previous month.

On a monthly basis, corporate service prices were down 0.3 percent after rising 0.7 percent in March. Among the individual components, prices were up for advertising and transportation. They were down for real estate and flat for other services.

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[IFX Matthias]

U.s. Dollar Trumps the Rest

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The dollar gained broadly in early Asian trade on Wednesday after robust economic data boosted Treasury yields and raised expectations that the Fed may make an early exit from its easing scheme, making the greenback more attractive.

Against a basket of currencies, the dollar rose 0.2 percent to 84.33 after tacking on 0.7 percent in the previous session.

Demand for dollars rose as Treasury yields surged to their highest in a year and the Dow stock index hit another record high.

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