Market wrap: EUR/USD rallies a cent higher - Westpac

Analysts at Westpac offered a market and economic wrap.

Key Quotes:

"Global market sentiment:

The USD was pressured lower once again overnight, EUR/USD rising about US1 cent to a high near 1.1913, its best levels in 2 ½ years. No single news item drove the USD lower though earlier news certainly made for an unhelpful background to the day’s trading, including Trump talking down the USD in a WSJ interview and threats of US measures to restrict trade with China. The Dow scaled +22k for yet another record high, thanks to earlier strong earnings from Apple but the other US indices slipped. Fedspeak was mixed, Bullard calling the median dot plot FOMC forecast for one more hike this year “inappropriate” while Mester said further hikes will be needed. Gold and oil both posted moderate gains.

Interest rates:

US 10yr yields pushed modestly lower, from 2.27+ to 2.24/2.25 after a weaker reading from the July US ADP jobs survey.

Currencies:  

EUR/USD continued to forge ahead, hitting fresh highs for this broader run up at 1.1913. The dollar bloc currencies were mild underperformers on several crosses, though NZD trimmed early weakness triggered by the weaker Q2 labour market report. Both AUD and NZD rose about US1/2 cent from their overnight lows, AUD back up near 0.8000 while NZD recovered back to 0.7450.

Economic wrap:

Eurozone producer prices for June fell 0.1%, in line with consensus expectations, weaker oil prices and a higher euro the drivers. The monthly ADP employment survey showed a gain of +178k, below consensus at +190k but the prior month saw a hefty +33k upward revision to +191k."