A mountain of activity lays ahead for markets as central banks continue to take centre stage.

The USD continued to gain in strength, pushing paired currencies down overnight. The EURUSD opened the day at $1.10712 and ticked up to an early high of $1.10747 before heading south over the next several hours. The euro reached $1.10357 before mounting a small recovery, hitting $1.10678 shortly before the Fed meeting. The conclusion of that meeting saw the pair drop to lows of $1.10128 before bouncing back to its current level of $1.10289. The GBPUSD opened at $1.24988 and declined in early trading, hitting lows of $1.24380 mid-session. It rebounded off those lows, climbing to a high of $1.25112 late in the day. The pound was able to hold itself up after the Fed meeting and is now trading at $1.24705.

As expected, the Dow went wild at the conclusion of the Fed meeting. The index began the day at 27,130.54 and slid throughout most of the session, before a sharp drop at the end of the meeting saw it hit lows of 26,914.47. It then rebounded in remarkable fashion, surging to a high of 27,192.76 an hour or so later. It has come off those highs and is now trading at 27,146.61. The Dax took advantage of the surging Dow, posting some solid gains itself overnight. The German index opened at 12,374.16 and fell to lows of 12,343.02 early in the day. It climbed off those lows and rallied late to peak at 12,421.73 before losing at 12,413.69.

The day ahead is jam-packed with activity, with central banks once again dominating headlines. The BoE meets later tonight to discuss interest rates for the UK. While rates are expected to remain on hold, there may be some important clues given to the make-up of future monetary policy settings, particularly considering Brexit continues to drag on.

Data released today includes:

Canada – ADP Non-Farm Employment Change

Australia – Employment Change, Unemployment Rate, RBA Bulletin

Japan – BoJ Policy Rate, Monetary Policy Statement and Press Conference, All Industries Activity

UK – BoE Official Bank Rate, Monetary Policy Summary and Asset Purchase Facility, Retail Sales

Europe – SNB Policy Rate and Monetary Policy Assessment, Swiss Trade Balance, European Current Account

US – Philly Fed Manufacturing Index, Current Account, Unemployment Claims, CB Leading Index, Existing Home Sales, Natural Gas Storage

Disclaimer: The information in this website is of a general nature only and the advice has been prepared without taking account of your objectives, financial situation or needs. Accordingly, before acting on the advice, you should consider the appropriateness of the advice having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs. We recommend you seek independent advice if necessary.