Later today, Friday, 23 May 2008, the U.S. housing data, which is the main indicator of the strength of the U.S. economy, will be released. In anticipation of this data, investors were sidelined in Asia financial markets, resulting in the U.S. Dollar remaining steady against the Yen and Euro.
Data for existing home sales for April will be announced today by the National Association of Realtors in Washington, D.C., and experts are predicting that the data will show that the housing sector is still weak. This data will be released two days after the Federal Reserve reduced its growth forecast for 2008 and increased its estimates for inflation for the current year. It appears that, except the housing data, analysts do not see any additional data that will affect the currency market today.
On May 22, 2008, at 01:00 (05:00 GMT) in Sydney, the U.S. Dollar traded at 104.10 Yen, compared to 104.04, while the Euro traded at $1.5725, compared to $1.5733.
According to the Bank of America, the Federal Reserve is unlikely to increase interest rates this year because of the weak U.S. economy; however, most analysts are predicting that it is probable that the Fed will raise interest rates by the end of the year, to curb inflation.
Since Monday, May 26, 2008 is a public holiday and financial markets will be closed, analysts do not expect significant movements in the financial markets today.