Important Events This Week Apr 22-26

The week is set to start out fairly quietly although we can expect activities to ramp up as it progresses due to several major releases later in the week.

Let us have a look at some of the most important events of this week Apr, 22-26:

Event: Interest Rate Decision – New Zealand

Date: April 23, 2013

Time: 9:00pm (GMT)

What It Is About and Why It’s Important

New Zealand’s interest rate has remained flat over the past two years at 2.5%. However, there are no indications that it is about to change soon.

Last week, the NZD/USD pair fell by 2.0% due to the disappointing figures of China’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). From the previous period’s 2.0%, China’s Q1 GDP grew by just 1.6%, contrary to the consensus of 1.9%. Like its neighbor, Australia, New Zealand’s economy is closely tied with that of China’s, changes in which creates a significant impact on the NZD and its overall economy.

Event: Gross Domestic Product (YoY, Q1) – UK

Date: April 25, 2013

Time: 8:30am (GMT)

What It Is About and Why It’s Important

The United Kingdom has had a difficult Q4 2012 as its GDP contracted by -0.3%. Things have somehow picked up over the first few months of 2013, albeit at a slow yet steady pace. The GDP is expected to grow at a modest 0.1% for Q1 2013. While it isn’t exactly a stellar figure, it is still much better than a contraction.

Event: National Consumer Price Index (YoY, Mar) – Japan

Date: April 25, 2013

Time: 11:30pm (GMT)

What It Is About and Why It’s Important

Japan’s Statistics Bureau is set to announce several CPI-related data on the 25^th of April. Figures for the National CPI have been on a steady drop (YoY) from January 2013’s -0.10%, followed by February’s -0.30% to March’s -0.7%.

Event: Interest Rate Decision – Japan

Date: April 26, 2013

Time: 3:00am (GMT)

What It Is About and Why It’s Important

Japan’s interest rate has been at a steady near-zero level since mid-2008, and there are no indicators that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) will change it anytime soon. The BoJ’s aggressive monetary policy has lowered the value of the JPY recently, much to the dismay of other G-20 members. During the last week’s G-20 meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors in Washingon, the BoJ’s Haruhiko Kuroda defended that Japan’s new stimulus package is designed to battle deflation rather than to weaken its currency. The move has so far driven up the USD/JPY pair almost to the 100.00 level.