An inconclusive session in the Dollar left the DXY sideways around the 103.40 zone, while the EUR/USD managed to rise further and revisit the 1.0800 zone against the backdrop of alternating risk appetite trends before of FOMC day.
Here's what you need to know on Wednesday, January 31:
A positive surprise in JOLT job openings, along with an improvement in consumer confidence according to the Conference Board, appear not to have been enough to provoke any reaction in the Dollar, which succumbed to the pre-FOMC calm. The Fed meets on Wednesday and is largely expected to leave monetary conditions unchanged, while attention is expected to turn to Chairman Powell's press conference and any hints on the timing of a potential rate cut. of interest. Previously, ADP is expected to report on job creation by the US private sector, supported by the publication of the Cost of Employment Index.
In the euro zone, the focus will be on Germany, with the release of retail sales and the labor market report for January, followed by the flash inflation rate for the first month of the year. The EUR/USD pair has been gaining some traction since last Friday, although its near-term development is expected to largely depend on the Fed's dynamics.
The GBP/USD traded on the defensive and returned to the area below 1.2700 despite the unresolved action of the Dollar in the price. As for Wednesday's agenda, house prices measured by Nationwide will be the only release of interest.
In sideways trading, USD/JPY reversed Monday's decline and posted modest gains near the 148.00 barrier. On Wednesday in Japan, the Bank of Japan's summary of opinions, retail sales, preliminary industrial production, housing construction starts and consumer confidence for January will be published.
In Australia, traders will closely monitor the release of the Q4 Inflation Rate and the monthly CPI indicator for December, ahead of next week's key RBA meeting. Additionally, China's manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMIs will also gain importance. Meanwhile, the AUD/USD pair maintained its consolidated trend around the 0.6600 area.
Crude oil prices resumed their upward path after Monday's sharp corrective fall, always supported by the persistent geopolitical unrest in the Middle East and the Red Sea crisis.
Gold prices added to the positive start to the week and briefly tested the $2,050 area, or multi-day highs. Silver, for its part, partially erased Monday's marked advance.
Source: Fx Street
I am Joshua Winder, a senior-level journalist and editor at World Stock Market. I specialize in covering news related to the stock market and economic trends. With more than 8 years of experience in this field, I have become an expert in financial reporting.
