Ella 
Here’s what you need to know for Friday, August 4:
The greenback remained relatively quiet early Friday, with the U.S. dollar index holding steady near 102.50 after snapping a five-day winning streak on Thursday. Retail sales data for June will be a staple of European economic reports on Friday. Later, market participants will be closely watching the U.S. jobs report for July, which will include non-farm payrolls and wage inflation data. Statistics Canada is also to release labor market data.
Following Thursday’s bear market start, Wall Street’s main indexes managed to bounce back and end the day with modest losses. In addition to a slight improvement in market sentiment, the release of macroeconomic data from the United States was mixed, causing the dollar rally to lose momentum. U.S. stock futures traded in positive territory early Friday, signaling an upbeat tone.
U.S. non-farm payrolls forecast: July non-farm payrolls expected to show stability in job market
U.S. factory orders rose 2.3% in June, while initial jobless claims for the week ended July 29 came in at 227,000, in line with market expectations. The ISM services sector purchasing managers’ index fell in July but remained above 50, while the employment index in the survey fell back to 50.7 from 53.1, highlighting weakening momentum in service sector employment growth.
EUR/USD rebounded from losses on Thursday and stabilized around 1.0950 early Friday. Data from Germany earlier in the day showed that factory orders rose 7% in June, far better than market forecasts for a 2% contraction.
GBP/USD touched its lowest level in more than a month at 1.2622 on Thursday before recovering above 1.2700. The Bank of England (BOE) raised its policy rate by 25 basis points to 5.25% as scheduled. In a post-meeting news conference, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey did not commit to another rate hike, sending the pound weaker against other currencies during Thursday’s European session.
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cut its inflation and economic growth forecasts in its quarterly Monetary Policy Statement (MPS) published on Friday. In a statement, the Reserve Bank of Australia pointed out that further policy tightening can provide some insurance against the upside risks of inflation. Meanwhile, China’s Ministry of Commerce announced on Friday that China will remove anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on barley imports from Australia from Aug. 5. AUD/USD traded higher following these developments and was last trading in positive territory above 0.6550.
USD/JPY turned lower, losing nearly 100 pips on Thursday. The pair was steady above 142.50 earlier on Friday.
Despite renewed dollar weakness on Thursday, XAU/USD struggled to gain traction as the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield continued to climb above 4.1%. In early European trading, gold prices fluctuated slightly above $1,930.
Bitcoin steadied above $29,000 after moving sideways in a narrow channel on Thursday. Ethereum fluctuates between $1,800 and $1,850, still directionless.
