Weaker than expected U.S. data
U.S. job openings in February dropped to the lowest level in nearly two years, suggesting that the labour market was cooling. Along with the PMI number miss yesterday, data out of the U.S. is slipping a little. We will have to wait until Friday and the U.S. non-farm payroll number before we can see the state of a trend should the non-farm numbers disappoint.
The U.S. dollar slipped further against the Euro as the pair traded above 1.0950 after starting the day below 1.0900. Unfortunately, the Rand has not caught the wave of U.S. dollar weakness. The Rand is firmly stuck in the R17.80 - R18.00 range as the risk premium associated with the Rand currently hinders any significant move lower. With the U.S. dollar slipping and no reaction from the Rand, the GBP, and EUR crosses seem elevated.
Oil relatively mute despite yesterday's gains
With the weak U.S. data print, the tug of war in the oil price has reached another critical point. With the U.S. economy slowing and possibly heading for a recession, oil demand could also slow down. Despite yesterday's rally, we have seen the price stall, which is currently trading at $84.90 per barrel. Gold has enjoyed the slower U.S. economic data, with the yellow metal jumping 40 dollars on the release of the number, and is currently trading at $2,020 per ounce.
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