There will be a lot to consider this week as currency markets hold tight for another round of grueling economic releases.  For the record, and aside from the all important employment report this Friday, there will be four central bank announcements.  The Reserve Bank of Australia is scheduled to set the tone first, making the an interest rate announcement Monday night (for US readers) with the market already expecting a 75 basis point rate cut from decision makers.  Following suit will be the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, Bank of England and the European Central Bank.  Amazingly, the market continues to anticipate nothing less than 50 basis points from all four - the Reserve Bank of New Zealand is expected to cut by a whopping 1.50 percent, putting the overnight cash rate at 5 percent.  Definitely not your run of the mill rate reduction.  This continued attempt of monetary easing is likely to keep traders on their toes as banks and institutions are likely to continue adjusting their portfolios and risk measures, keeping the market relatively choppy in the short term.

Additionally, the market will also be anticipating key addresses by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Paulson as well as the announcement of more cabinet positions by President Elect Obama.  Although the statements will likely not bring about any change in the rather lackluster market right now, they may present key opportunities in the major currencies.

Tags: Central Banks

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 30th, 2008 at 3:11 pm and is filed under Australian Dollar, British Pound, Currency Trading, Economic Indicators, Euro. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.