ECB interest rate decision tonight

September 7, 2017

A busy night for markets with plenty of data released throughout the day. There is also quite a lot of activity away from announcements that will keep markets occupied.

The US markets finished slightly up yesterday as policymakers agreed the lift Federal Government’s debt ceiling. Lifting the debt ceiling effectively allows the government to continue functioning by allowing it to fund programs and commitments. All three major US indexes finished the trading day up between 0.25-0.31%. Most major European stocks finished modestly higher, with the DAX being the best performer, up around 91 points, or 0.75%. The FTSE bucked the trend however, finishing 19 points lower, or -0.25%.

The Euro continues to strengthen against the USD, sitting at around $1.1925 at time of print. This might be caused by a weakening of the USD, rather than anything from the Euro side of the currency pairing, as some of the other major currencies have also strengthened against the USD. The ECB Minimum Bid Rate tonight may also cause the currency to fluctuate.

Gold finished slightly lower as markets apprehension eased over the situation in North Korea and news that an agreement had been reached to lift the debt ceiling in the US provided temporary buoyancy to markets. Gold currently sits at $1,338.30.

Looking at events around the world, and hot on the heels of Hurricane Harvey wreaking Havoc in Texas, a Hurricane Irma as emerged in the Caribbean and looks headed towards the US. Already, the US state of Florida, has started preparing for the hurricane to hit in the next couple of days. These weather events are significant as they can do significant damage to infrastructure, which impacts economic output for the area affected, which in turn affects the economic output for the nation as a whole.

Turning to announcements, the ECB will release its interest rate data for the Eurozone later tonight. While it’s expected that interest will remain unchanged, it will be important to listen to the speeches made by ECB policymakers as they can give an indication as to which way they think monetary policy settings will be headed in the future.

Other announcements today include:

Australia – Retail Sales & Trade Balance

Japan – Leading Indicators

Europe – German Industrial Production, French Trade Balance, Swiss Foreign Currency Reserves, European Revised GDP

UK – Halifax HPI

Canada – Building Permits, Ivey PMI

US – Unemployment Claims, Revised Non-Farm Productivity, Revised Unit Labour Costs, IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism, Natural Gas Storage, Crude Oil Inventories. Meanwhile, Fed Reserve Member, William Dudley, is due to speak.