USD/SGD – Greenback Rally Continues, Markets Await Key NFP Report

USD/SGD has posted slight gains on Thursday, continuing the upward trend which began a day earlier. Taking a look at economic releases, US Unemployment Claims rose to 276, missing expectations. We’ll also hear from three key FOMC members during the day. There are no Singapore releases this week. Traders should keep a close eye on US Nonfarm Payrolls, a key market-mover which will be released on Friday.

US unemployment claims disappointed, as the key indicator jumped to 276 thousand, way above the forecast of 263 thousand. This marked a 5-week high. Still, recent jobless claim releases point to close to full employment, and these types of positive readings are important ammunition for Fed members who are in favor of a rate hike. The markets will now focus on Nonfarm Payrolls, which will be released on Friday. NFP is expected to rise sharply to 173 thousand, so the dollar could be a big winner if the indicator meets expectations.

Wednesday was a positive day for US releases, and the dollar responded with gains against its Singapore counterpart. ADP Nonfarm Payrolls, which precedes the official Nonfarm Payroll report, came in at 182 thousand, very close to the forecast but well off last month’s reading of 200 thousand. The September US trade deficit narrowed to $40.8 billion, its lowest level since February. There was more good news from the ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI, which jumped to 59.1 points, easily beating the estimate of 56.6 points.

USD/SGD Fundamentals

Thursday (Nov. 5)

• 12:30 US Challenger Job Cuts. Actual -1.3
• 13:30 US Unemployment Claims. Estimate 263K. Actual 276K
• 13:30 FOMC Member William Dudley Speaks
• 13:30 US Preliminary Nonfarm Productivity. Estimate 0.1%. Actual 1.6%
• 13:30 US Preliminary Unit Labor Costs. Estimate 2.2%. Actual 1.4%
• 14:10 FOMC Member Stanley Fischer Speaks
• 15:30 US Natural Gas Storage. Estimate 60B. Actual 52B
• 18:30 FOMC Member Dennis Lockhart Speaks

Upcoming Key Releases

Friday (Nov. 6)

• 13:30 US Average Hourly Earnings. Estimate 0.2%
• 13:30 US Nonfarm Employment Charge. Estimate 179K
• 13:30 US Unemployment Rate. Estimate 5.0%

*Key releases are highlighted in bold

* All times are GMT

USD/SGD for Thursday, November 5, 2015

USD/SGD November 5 at 17:45 GMT

USD/SGD 140.71 H: 140.85 L: 140.16

USD/SGD Technical

• USD/SGD was uneventful in the Asian session. The pair has posted modest gains in the European and North American sessions.
• 1.3900 has strengthened in support as the pair posted strong gains on Wednesday.
• 1.4073 was tested earlier and is under strong pressure. Will the pair break through in the North American session?
• Current range: 1.3900 to 1.4073

Further levels in both directions:

• Below: 1.3900, 1.3823 and 1.3746
• Above: 1.4073, 1.4139 and 1.4248

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.