It’s a big week ahead for markets, with a swathe of significant data set for release from around the world.

The USD once again man-handled the majors. The EUR/USD was belted, as has been the case of late. It opened at $1.17209 on Friday, then declined to $1.16834 before showing some signs of life, reaching a high of $1.17326. It looked uncomfortable at that height, so it decided to retreat. The pair closed at a low of $1.16447. The dreaded market gap may have caught a few people on the hop this morning, as it opened at $1.16837. This may be due to progress in Italy surrounding the formation of a national government. It is currently trading at $1.16872. The GBP/USD followed the euro. Opening at $1.33834, it fell to $1.33301 before bouncing up to a high of $1.33778. It was unable to hold onto those gains as it declined for the rest of the session, closing session lows of $1.32881. It opened slightly higher this morning and is currently trading at $1.33068.

The Dow once again struggled to close out a week strongly. After climbing to session highs of 24,902.17 fairy early, it pulled back slightly, where it remained rather flat over the next few hours. It then started to fall in later trading, hitting lows of 24,675.25 very late in trading. It closed the session at 24,727.00. It has opened around 80 points higher this morning and is currently trading at 24,820.30. The Dax closed rather flat, despite some fluctuations throughout the session. It opened at 12,887.68 and climbed steadily until it peaked at 12,997.70. From that point, it weakened over the next few hours, reaching lows of 12,848.00. It rallied late in the session to close at 12,927.50.

The week ahead is full of significant announcements that have the potential to cause some volatility. Away from raw data, there are also political events from around the world that could have an impact on markets (Italy forming government etc).  The data set for publication today and the most significant for the rest of the week include:

Today – Japanese SPPI, UK & US bank holidays

Tuesday – US CB Consumer Confidence

Wednesday – US Prelim GDP, US ADP Non-Farm Employment Change, BoJ Governor Haruhiko & RBNZ Governor Adrian Orr speak, RBNZ Financial Stability Report

Thursday – Canadian Overnight Rate, BoC Rate Statement, Canadian GDP, NZ ANZ Business Confidence, Australian Private Capital Expenditure, SNB Chairman Thomas Jordan speaks

Friday – US Non-Farm Employment Change, Unemployment Rate & Average Hourly Earnings, US ISM Manufacturing PMI, UK Manufacturing PMI, US Crude Oil Inventories

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