US annual inflation data released at 6.4%

February 15, 2023

The Dow closed lower Tuesday, as investors digested the latest data showing signs of cooling, but stickier inflation that triggered a jump in Treasury yields on bets for a more aggressive Federal Reserve. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.46% or 156 points, the Nasdaq was up 0.57%, and the S&P 500 was flat.

The consumer price index rose 0.5% last month, in line with expectations, but for the 12 months through January was 6.4%, above expectations of 6.2%. Core inflation, which strips out energy and food prices, slowed to an annualized pace of 5.6% in January, though that was smaller than the expected decrease of 5.5%.

Stocks in Asia are primed for a cautious open after a choppy day on Wall Street ended flat as investors balanced hot inflation data with Federal Reserve commentary suggesting US interest rates may soon peak.

Shares in Australia fell and equity futures in Japan and Hong Kong inched higher. US futures edged lower in early Asian trading. The S&P 500 ended Tuesday little changed while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, which is more sensitive to higher interest rates, rose 0.7%.

Main Pairs Movement

US DXY gauges the greenback versus a basket of its main competitors, try to regain some composure, and leaves behind earlier lows in the lower 103.0 regions on turnaround Tuesday. The dollar was largely unchanged based on the US core CPI (MoM, Jan) figure fits market expectations with a 0.4% rise, CPI (YoY, Jan) 6.4% with 0.2% higher than forecast, and CPI (MoM, Jan) 0.5%.

At the time of writing, the price traded at 103.269, twenty minutes before the trading session closing.

Although the Fed hawks joined the technical breakdown to tease the Gold bears, the metal’s further downside hinges on how well the scheduled United States data can entertain the XAU/USD sellers. Among them, US Retail Sales for January, expected at 1.8% versus -1.1% prior, will be closely watched for clear directions. Should the data management reverse the previous monthly contraction, the odds of witnessing further XAU/USD downside can’t be ruled out. At the time of writing, the price traded at 1853.91.

WTI oil bears seek a break of $79.00 to open the floodgates. US crude prices are adding to earlier declines, falling after the US consumer price index data and during the Wall Street cash open. At the time of writing, the US oil price traded at 78.837.

Technical Analysis

EURUSD (4-Hour Chart)

The EURUSD erased most of its daily gains and began to turn south after reaching a daily high of 1.0800 level, as investors continued to react to the US Consumer Price Index report. The pair lost its upside momentum following US CPI rose at an annualized 6.4% in January and 5.6% when it comes to the Core CPI, higher than the expected 6.2% and 5.5% respectively. Moreover, the Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Logan said, “We must remain prepared to continue rate increases for a longer period than previously anticipated, if such a path is necessary to respond to changes in the economic outlook or to offset any undesired easing in conditions,” which managed to provide a boost for US Dollar, in turn, undermining the pair.

From the technical perspective, the four-hour scale RSI indicator slid back to the neutral area, suggesting that the upbeat market mood has faded. As for the Bollinger Bands, the pair was priced in the upper area and supported by a 20-period moving average, showing that the EURUSD currently has no clear direction to move and investors would carefully reassess the future path.

Resistance: 1.0930, 1.1020

Support: 1.0666, 1.0508

GBPUSD (4-Hour Chart)

The GBPUSD dropped dramatically in American trading hours following the release of inflation data in the United States. US CPI cooled on an annual basis but was higher than forecasts US inflation reported by the Department of Labor (DoL) showed that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for January rose by 6.4% YoY, above estimates of 6.2%, while core CPI jumped to 5.6% YoY, against data estimated at 5.5%. Monthly basis regardings were in line with estimates. After the data release, US Treasury bond yields advanced, with the US 2-year Treasury bond yield edging towards 4.622%, as an initial reaction to the data, which warrants further tightening by the US Federal Reserve (Fed). Domestic, according to Reuters, wages in Britain grew quickly in the last quarter of 2022, keeping the Bank of England (BoE) pressured.

From the technical perspective, the four-hour scale RSI indicator slightly fell to 59 figures as of writing, suggesting that the pair was surrounded by strong positive traction. As for the Bollinger Bands, the pair kept trading in the upper area and the gap size tend to be larger, showing the GBPUSD was more favored to the upside path.

Resistance: 1.2265, 1.2391, 1.2492

Support: 1.1927, 1.1859

XAUUSD (4-Hour Chart)

The gold price tumbled to a fresh monthly low at $1843.36 for the first time since January after Wall Street’s opening and following the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) release. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the CPI rose by 6.4% every year in January, easing from 6.5% previous but higher than the 6.2% expected. The core CPI rose by 5.6% every year, also easing from the previous but higher than expectations. On the upside, inflationary pressures continue to ease but not enough to take the Fed away from its tightening path. At the time of writing, the pair is trading at $1,855.93, posting a 0.12% gain daily, while the benchmark 10-year US Treasury bond yield rose 1.57% to 3.765%, exerting selling pressure on Gold price.

For the technical aspect, RSI indicator 42 figures as of writing, maintaining around selling region as the price keeps moving under selling pressure in the near term. As for the Bollinger Bands, the price is hovering between the downward moving average and the lower band. The bearish trend should persist. In conclusion, we think the market is in bearish mode as both indicators show bearish potential. Besides, the price is edging lower and keeps forming a lower-low technical pattern, which favors the bearish side. For the downtrend scenario, the next support level is $1,830. If the price close below the level, it may trigger some technical selling and drag the price deeper.

Resistance: 1900, 1920, 1957

Support: 1830, 1800

Economic Data