Major economies showing signs of recovery as vaccine rollout programs continue to accelerate. The Bank of Canada tapered its QE, while the ECB stood pat. This week the Federal Reserve holds a policy decision, while the US and Germany release GDP for the first quarter.
Last week’s ECB policy meeting was described as “a meeting to forget”, as policymakers maintained policy and provided clues as to the bank’s future plans. ECB head Lagarde stated that it was premature to discuss tapering QE.
- US Consumer Confidence: Tuesday, 14:00. The US consumer is showing strong confidence in the US economy. The March reading came in at 109.7 and the indicator is projected to rise to 112.0 in April.
- FOMC Statement: Wednesday, 18:00: Wednesday, 18:00. The Federal Reserve is expected to maintain its accommodative policy. A more hawkish tone than expected in the statement would be bullish for the US dollar.
- German Unemployment Change: Thursday, 7:55. Unemployment fell by 8 thousand in February, better than the estimate of -4 thousand. The estimate for March stands at -10 thousand.
- US Advance GDP: Thursday, 12:30. The US economy grew by 4.3% in Q4, revised upwardly from 4.0% beforehand. With economic conditions improving, the initial estimate for Q1 GDP stands at 6.5%.
- German Prelim GDP: Friday, 8:00. GDP for the first quarter is expected to take a downturn, with an estimate of -1.5%. The country continues to grapple with the Covid pandemic and tighter health restrictions have hampered economic growth.
- Canada GDP: Friday, 12:30. Canada releases GDP on a monthly basis. The economy expanded by 0.7% in January and the estimate for February stands at 0.9%.
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