A choppy start to the week

It’s been a relatively lackluster start to the trading week, following the one previous that was anything but.

There’s no doubt that the last seven days have left investors with plenty to work out and the jobs report on Friday yielded a response in the markets which probably sums up how confused investors appear right now.

It was another hot report with little in it to suggest we’re seeing cracks appearing that will deliver the slack that the Fed thinks it needs. Trade around the report was volatile, clearly, with the final view seeming very positive. I’m not sure how sustainable that is under the circumstances, especially considering the response to the Fed two days earlier.

But again, perhaps that’s a sign of where things stand. After the Fed, I thought the markets were too negative. The focus on where rates could rise to overshadowed the fact that the pace is likely to slow, buying time for the data to deliver what the Fed needs to warrant doing so more. But that jobs report on Friday does not fall into that category so I think confused probably sums up where markets stand now and how today has started.

Which brings us to the inflation report on Thursday and what that could do for sentiment as we move toward the end of the year. It is one of two inflation reports before the next meeting but you have to think we need two good readings for the Fed to scale back its expectations and give markets the festive cheer they so clearly want. Until then, more choppy and confused trade may be what we get.

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This article is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Corporation or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. Leveraged trading is high risk and not suitable for all. You could lose all of your deposited funds.

Based in London, Craig Erlam joined OANDA in 2015 as a market analyst. With many years of experience as a financial market analyst and trader, he focuses on both fundamental and technical analysis while producing macroeconomic commentary.

His views have been published in the Financial Times, Reuters, The Telegraph and the International Business Times, and he also appears as a regular guest commentator on the BBC, Bloomberg TV, FOX Business and SKY News.

Craig holds a full membership to the Society of Technical Analysts and is recognised as a Certified Financial Technician by the International Federation of Technical Analysts.

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