There were no data releases from Eurozone yesterday, with euro edging lower after recent gains. Many analysts believe that further strength will be capped by the prospect of ECB intervention and of foreign investors selling off eurozone assets. Despite the rally, many analysts are standing by long standing predictions that the euro will hit parity with the dollar by the end of this year. The euro's gains come despite unprecedented stimulus from the ECB, which needs a lower currency to help stoke inflation.
In the US session
Unemployment Claims figures were released. In the week ending April 30, the advance figure for
seasonally adjusted initial claims was 274,000, an increase of 17,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 257,000. The 4-week moving average was 258,000, an increase of 2,000 from the previous week's unrevised average of 256,000. This marks 61 consecutive weeks of initial claims below 300,000, the longest streak since 1973. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.5% for the week ending April 23, a decrease of 0.1 percentage point from the previous week's unrevised rate.
There will be no data releases from Eurozone tomorrow. In the US session, NFP figures will be published. Analysts are anticipating increase by 203,000, while Unemployment Rate should remain unchanged at 5.0%.
Figures to watch:
Non-Farm Employment Change/Unemployment Rate (Friday 14:30)