Daily Market Commentary 16th February 2021

Japanese GDP surged 12.7%, on an annualised basis, for the final quarter of 2020. This was a pleasant surprise and increased market confidence, which spread through to European trade. US markets were closed for Washington’s Birthday. The US Dollar continued to beat a retreat, with the EUR rising back to 1.2130, while the GBP broke above 1.3900.

The trade exposed commodity currencies also fared well, with the AUD trading 0.7780, while the NZD pushed up to 0.7230. Local markets will await some direction from the release of the RBA minutes, which will give some insight into the state of the Australian economy, according to the Central Bank. US markets will reopen on record highs and welcome a healthy portion of economic data releases.