The U.S. dollar was seen strengthening yesterday after the markets remained fairly flat for the most part. Investors were waiting to hear the newly appointed Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, give his testimony to the U.S. Congress.
As expected, Powell gave an upbeat view of the U.S. economy which the markets translated to as a potential signal for a rate hike in March. However, Powell did not make any references to the number of times the Fed could hike rates and did not give any indicators about a potential rate hike in March.
Looking ahead, the economic calendar today will see the flash inflation estimates from the Eurozone for the month of February. Economists polled expect to see a slight decline in the headline CPI which is expected to rise at a slower pace of 1.2%, compared to 1.3% increase registered in January. Core inflation rate is expected to remain steady, rising at a pace of 1.0% for the month of February.
Later in the day, the U.S. second revised GDP estimates will be coming out. Economists expect to see the U.S. GDP rising 2.5% in the fourth quarter of 2017. This marks a slight decline from the 2.6% increase that was registered in the preliminary report. Last but not the least, the pending home sales data is also on the tap later in the day with expectations showing a 0.4% increase which is slightly down from the 0.5% increase registered in the previous month.
