| Time |
Currency |
Economic impact |
Event |
Prev. |
Forecast |
Fact |
| 00:45 |
NZD |
high |
Retail Sales m/m |
0.0% |
0.4% |
|
Measures: Change in the total value of sales at the retail level;
Usual Effect: Actual > Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 45 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 14, 2010
FF Notes: This is the earliest and broadest look at vital consumer spending data;
Why Traders Care: It's the primary gauge of consumer spending, which accounts for the majority of overall economic activity;
|
| 00:45 |
NZD |
medium |
Core Retail Sales m/m |
-1.8% |
0.7% |
|
Measures: Change in the total value of sales at the retail level, excluding automobiles;
Usual Effect: Actual > Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 45 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 14, 2010
FF Notes: Automobile sales account for about 20% of Retail Sales, but they tend to be very volatile and distort the underlying trend. The Core data is therefore thought to be a better gauge of spending trends;
Also Called: Retail Sales Ex Autos;
|
| 07:30 |
JPY |
low |
Revised Industrial Production m/m |
2.5% |
2.5% |
|
| — |
| 10:00 |
EUR |
low |
German WPI m/m |
1.3% |
0.6% |
|
Measures: Change in the price of goods sold by wholesalers;
Usual Effect: Actual > Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 12 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 13, 2010
Why Traders Care: It's a leading indicator of consumer inflation - when wholesalers charge more for goods and services the higher costs are usually passed on to the consumer;
Acro Expand: Wholesale Price Index (WPI);
|
| 13:00 |
EUR |
medium |
Industrial Production m/m |
-1.6% |
0.8% |
|
Measures: Change in the total inflation-adjusted value of output produced by manufacturers, mines, and utilities;
Usual Effect: Actual > Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 45 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 14, 2010
FF Notes: Tends to have a relatively mild impact because Germany and France, which account for about half of the Eurozone's economy, release earlier production data;
Why Traders Care: It's a leading indicator of economic health - production reacts quickly to ups and downs in the business cycle and is correlated with consumer conditions such as employment levels and earnings;
|
| 13:00 |
GBP |
medium |
MPC Member Dale Speaks |
|
|
|
Speaker: BOE Chief Economist Spencer Dale;
Description: Due to speak at Trinity College, in Cambridge;
Usual Effect: More hawkish than expected = Good for currency;
FF Notes: MPC voting member Jul 2008 - Jun 2011;
Why Traders Care: BOE MPC members vote on where to set the nation's key interest rates and their public engagements are often used to drop subtle clues regarding future monetary policy;
Acro Expand: Bank of England (BOE), Monetary Policy Committee (MPC);
|
| 15:00 |
CAD |
high |
Employment Change |
43.0K |
17.5K |
|
Measures: Change in the number of employed people during the previous month;
Usual Effect: Actual > Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 8 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 9, 2010
FF Notes: This is vital economic data released shortly after the month ends. The combination of importance and earliness makes for hefty market impacts;
Why Traders Care: Job creation is an important leading indicator of consumer spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity;
|
| 15:00 |
CAD |
high |
Unemployment Rate |
8.3% |
8.3% |
|
Measures: Percentage of total work force that is unemployed and actively seeking employment during the previous month;
Usual Effect: Actual < Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 8 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 9, 2010
Why Traders Care: Although it's generally viewed as a lagging indicator, the number of unemployed people is an important signal of overall economic health because consumer spending is highly correlated with labor-market conditions;
Also Called: Jobless Rate;
|
| 16:30 |
USD |
high |
Core Retail Sales m/m |
0.6% |
0.1% |
|
Measures: Change in the total value of sales at the retail level, excluding automobiles;
Usual Effect: Actual > Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 14 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 14, 2010
FF Notes: Automobile sales account for about 20% of Retail Sales, but they tend to be very volatile and distort the underlying trend. The Core data is therefore thought to be a better gauge of spending trends;
Also Called: Retail Sales Ex Autos;
|
| 16:30 |
USD |
high |
Retail Sales m/m |
0.5% |
-0.1% |
|
Measures: Change in the total value of sales at the retail level;
Usual Effect: Actual > Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 14 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 14, 2010
FF Notes: This is the earliest and broadest look at vital consumer spending data;
Why Traders Care: It's the primary gauge of consumer spending, which accounts for the majority of overall economic activity;
|
| 17:55 |
USD |
high |
Prelim UoM Consumer Sentiment |
73.6 |
74.0 |
|
Measures: Level of a composite index based on surveyed consumers;
Usual Effect: Actual > Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, around the middle of the current month;
Next Release: Apr 16, 2010
FF Notes: There are 2 versions of this data released 14 days apart – Preliminary and Revised. The Preliminary release is the earlier and thus tends to have the most impact;
Why Traders Care: Financial confidence is a leading indicator of consumer spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity;
Derived Via: Survey of about 500 consumers which asks respondents to rate the relative level of current and future economic conditions;
Also Called: Reuters/University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment;
Acro Expand: University of Michigan (UoM);
|
| 17:55 |
USD |
low |
Prelim UoM Inflation Expectations |
2.7% |
|
|
Measures: Percentage that consumers expect the price of goods and services to change during the next 12 months;
Frequency: Released monthly, around the middle of the current month;
Next Release: Apr 16, 2010
Why Traders Care: Expectations of future inflation can manifest into real inflation, primarily because workers tend to push for higher wages when they believe prices will rise;
Derived Via: Survey of about 500 consumers which asks respondents where they expect prices to be 12 months in the future;
Acro Expand: University of Michigan (UoM);
|
| 18:00 |
USD |
medium |
Business Inventories m/m |
-0.2% |
0.2% |
|
Measures: Change in the total value of goods held in inventory by manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers;
Usual Effect
3e8
: Actual < Forecast = Good for currency;
Frequency: Released monthly, about 45 days after the month ends;
Next Release: Apr 14, 2010
Why Traders Care: It's a signal of future business spending because companies are more likely to purchase goods when they have depleted inventories;
|
| 23:45 |
EUR |
medium |
ECB President Trichet Speaks |
|
|
|
Speaker: ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet;
Description: Due to speak at the Institute of Economic Policy Research, in Stanford;
FF Notes: ECB President Nov 2003 - Nov 2011. Volatility is often experienced during his speeches as traders attempt to decipher interest rate clues;
Why Traders Care: As head of the ECB, which controls short term interest rates, he has more i
3e8
nfluence over the euro's value than any other person. Traders scrutinize his public engagements as they are often used to drop subtle clues regarding future monetary policy;
Acro Expand: European Central Bank (ECB);
|
