David Scutt

NZD/USD looks terrible on the charts, weighed down by the RBNZ’s dovish pivot and renewed concerns towards the outlook for the Chinese economy. While that cyclical play looks ill, a bounce in Nikkei 225 futures has provide a decent long setup into US tech earnings.

USD/CNH is threatening to break higher after the PBOC cut key policy rates, putting a potential retest of the 2024 highs on the cards. Given its historical close correlation with USD/JPY, renewed yuan weakness could drag other Asian currencies lower against the dollar.

Rate cut expectations from the Federal Reserve are back driving the gold price, making it a relatively easy task of knowing what to focus on in the week ahead. The challenge is knowing how they may evolve given multiple rate cuts are already priced over the remainder of the year.

Considering the rally in cyclical assets following the soft US inflation report, the steep reversal in AUD/USD comes across as a little strange. As long as economic growth holds up, the prospect of Fed rate cuts should provide tailwinds for cyclicals. Therefore, the reversal has created a short setup. But not against the US dollar.

GBP/USD has taken out the highs struck in June, pushing further above 1.2800 on Thursday. A test of the 2024 highs now looks to be on the cards. While there is UK data on the calendar, you get the sense it will be the US inflation report later in the session that will determine what happens next for Cable.

Interest rates are starting to be cut across the developed world. The combination of lower borrowing costs and positive economic growth should benefit cyclical assets, including stock indices which have lagged during the aggressive rate tightening cycle of recent years. That presents an opportunity for traders.