GBP Becomes Big Loser, Aussie Damaged from Shock Job Loss

An unusual loss in Aussie jobs and weaker than expected UK industrial production further & USD extended USD rally at the expense of risk currencies and commodities. GBP shifts from having been the big winner yesterday to the great loser. Aussie broke below 1.06.

GBP UK March industrial production rose 0.3% from February (vs exp 0.9%) and up 0.7% y/y (vs exp 1.1%) . Oil and gas extraction dropped 12.4% m/m. Manuf production edged up 0.2% m/m, but on a y/y level, it slowed to 2.7% from 4.9%.

The Australian dollar slumped overnight on the back of tumbling commodity prices with oil and copper both falling on concerns that rising inflation could cause some demand destruction and a reduction in global economic growth. The plunge was exacerbated after Australian employment data showed a decline of 22k surprising analysts who had expected a gain of 17k. This unexpected drop prompted some speculation that a rate hike may be a little further off as the Aussie dollar slipped towards its May lows around 1.0540.

US retail sales, weekly jobless claims and PPI data are due out later this afternoon, and markets will be looking for an improvement after last weeks surprise jump in weekly jobless.

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By KM - AshrafLaidi.com Staff