Trade talks and US macroeconomic data releases headline

US data focus

During the upcoming trading week macroeconomic data releases from the United States and ongoing trade talks between the United States and China take center stage. The United States economy releases key Retail Sales, Manufacturing, Industrial Production, Housing, and Consumer Confidence data this week. Global equity markets have been coming under pressure recently after the Trump administration imposed fresh trade tariffs on Chinese goods coming into America.

This week we also see key jobs numbers from the United Kingdom and Canadian economy, Retail Sales and Industrial Production figures from the Chinese economy and key Inflation numbers coming from the eurozone economy. The Australian also economy releases key Home Loans, Employment, and Unemployment data.

Monday 13th May, AUD Australian Home Loans

Australian Home Loans data is released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics and represents the number of home loans issued in Australia on a monthly basis. Home loans data help indicate the current housing market trend in Australia and a level of consumer confidence as large housing loans are taken out. A high reading is seen positive for the Australian dollar, while a low reading is seen as being negative for the Australian dollar.

•  The AUDUSD pair is only bullish while trading above the 0.7040 level, key resistance is found at the 0.7100 and 0.7150 levels.
• If the AUDUSD pair moves below the 0.7040 level, sellers may test towards the 0.6950 and 0.6880 levels.

Tuesday 14th May, GBP UK Unemployment Rate

The United Kingdom Unemployment Rate is a figure released by the National Statistics and is calculated by dividing the number of out of work individuals in the labour force, by all individuals currently in the labour force. High unemployment generally indicates that an economy is unsatisfying or has a falling gross domestic product and low unemployment may reflect an expanding economy.

• The GBPUSD pair is bearish while trading below the 1.3000 level, key support is found at the 1.2866 and 1.2770 levels.
• If the GBPUSD pair moves above the 1.3000 level, key resistance is found at the 1.3100 and 1.3180 levels.

Wednesday 15th May, USD United States Retail Sales

US Retail Sales is released by the United States Census Bureau and measures the change in the total value of inflation-adjusted sales at the retail level over a stated time period. This figure represents an indicator of consumer spending inside the United States economy. Higher retail sales figures generally show stronger consumer spending, which is vital for the US GDP and economic growth.

• The USDJPY pair is bearish while trading below the 110.00 level, key support is found at the 109.40 and 108.50 levels.
• If the USDJPY pair trades above the 110.00 level, buyers may test towards the 110.65 and 111.10 resistance levels.

Thursday 16th May, AUD Australian Unemployment Rate

The Australian Unemployment Rate is released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics and measures the percentage of the total Australian workforce that is currently unemployed and actively seeking employment during the previous month. The figure has a significant impact on the Australian dollar because of the overall importance of employment for the Australian economy.

• The AUDJPY pair is only bullish while trading above the 0.7800 level, key resistance is found at the 0.7845 and 0.7915 levels.
• If the AUDJY pair holds below the 0.7800 level, sellers may test towards the 0.7650 and 0.7510 levels.

Friday 17th May, EUR Eurozone Consumer Price Index

The eurozone Consumer Price Index, released by Eurostat measures the changes in the price of goods and services from the perspective of the consumer. A higher value of the CPI represents significant inflationary pressures in the eurozone economies and also puts pressure on the European Central Bank to raise interest rates. CPI inflation data may not affect the markets significantly because CPI inflation is the European Central Bank's mandated inflation target.

• The EURUSD pair is only bearish while trading below the 1.1190 level, key support is found at the 1.1164 and 1.1120 levels.
• If the EURUSD pair trades above the 1.1190 level, buyers will likely test towards the 1.1290 and 1.1360 resistance levels.