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Forex Daily Outlook – August 19 2010

Very busy day filled with interesting and varied news. Philly Fed Manufacturing Index in the US, James Bullard speaks in Arkansas, Retail Sales in Great Britain, , German PPI in  Europe and more. Let’s see what awaits us today.

In the US, Unemployment Claims, The number of individuals who filed for unemployment insurance for the first time during the past week decreased by 5K, the nation’s earliest economic data, and the number of unemployed people is an important signal of overall economic health because consumer spending is highly correlated with labor-market conditions.

Later in the US, Philly Fed Manufacturing Index, monthly survey of about 250 manufacturers in the Philadelphia Federal Reserve district which asks respondents to rate the relative level of general business conditions; indicates improving conditions 7.2 points, It’s a leading indicator of economic health, changes in businesses sentiment can be an early signal of future economic activity such as spending, hiring, and investment.

Finally in the US, Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis President James Bullard speaks about the US economy at the John Q Hammond Center, in Arkansas. Affects the nation’s key interest rates and the future monetary policy.

In Canada, Leading Index, the level of a composite index based on 10 economic indicators increased by 6% and this index is designed to predict the direction of the economy.

More in Canada, Wholesale Sales, the total value of sales at the wholesale level increased by 5% and it’s a leading indicator of consumer spending – retailers generally order more goods from wholesalers when they expect consumer sales to increase.

For more on USD/CAD, read the  Canadian dollar forecast.

in  Europe, German Producer Price Index (PPI), the price of goods sold by manufacturers has decreased by 4% and It’s a leading indicator of consumer inflation – when manufacturers charge more for goods the higher costs are usually passed on to the consumer.

For more on the Euro, read the  EUR/USD forecast and Casey Stubbs’  latest analysis.

In Great Britain, Retail Sales, the total value of inflation-adjusted sales at the retail level that Released monthly, has decreased by 3% and it’s the primary gauge of consumer spending, which accounts for the majority of overall economic activity.

More in Great Britain, Prelim Mortgage Approvals, Number of new mortgages approved for home purchases during the previous month has decreased by 1K, and It’s a leading indicator of housing market demand – most home purchases are financed with a mortgage, so it provides an excellent gauge of how many qualified buyers are entering the market;

Later in Great Britain, Public Sector Net Borrowing, in value between spending and income for public corporations, the central government, and local governments during the previous month has decreased by 9.4B and indicates a budget deficit.

Finally in Britain, Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Industrial Order Expectations, Monthly Survey of about 550 manufacturers which asks respondents to rate the relative level of order volume expected during the next 3 months, indicates expectations are for lower volume on -14 points.

Read more about the Pound in the  GBP/USD forecast.

In Switzerland, Trade Balance, the Difference in value between imported and exported goods during the reported month has increased by 0.09B and indicates that more goods were exported than imported.

More in Switzerland, Zentrum fur Europaische Wirtschaftsforschung (ZEW), Economic Expectations, ac Monthly Survey of institutional investors and analysts which asks respondents to rate the relative 6-month economic outlook for Switzerland indicates optimism of 2.2 points.

In New Zealand, Visitor Arrivals, the number of short-term overseas visitors who arrived in the country stabilizes on 3%. Tourism plays an important role in the economy – about 10% of the population is employed by the tourism industry, and a sizable portion of the nation’s GDP is indirectly related to tourism.

That’s it for today. Happy forex trading!

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Anat Dror

Anat Dror

Anat Dror Senior Writer I conceptualize, design and create multi-lingual websites. Apart from the technical work, my projects usually consist of writing content for these sites in English, French and Hebrew. In the past, I have built, managed and marketed an e-learning center for language studies, including moderating a live community of students. I've also worked as a community organizer