The EUR/USD exchange rate remained above the 1.2400 level, following the Fed's interest rate decision and monetary policy statement. The pair fell 23 pips or 0.18% to the 1.2395 mark, but recovered initially.
The US Federal Reserve announced the decision to keep interest rates at 1.50% on Wednsday, but stated that consumer inflation is likely to accelerate this year, fuelling expectations that borrowing costs would keep climbing under the new Central Bank's Chief Jerome Powell. Citing strong increases in household spending, capital investment and employment, the Fed anticipated the country's economy to expand at a modest pace and the job market to remain solid in 2018. The Bank is expected to hike rates three times more this year.
| Historical Data Table: Fed Interest Rate Decision | Economic Calendar for 01.02.2018 | ||||||||
| Date | 26.07.2017 | 20.09.2017 | 01.11.2017 | 13.12.2017 | 31.01.2018 | 1:30 PM | US Nonfarm Productivity | ||
| Actual | <1.25% | <1.25% | <1.25% | <1.50% | <1.50% | 1:30 PM | US Unit Labour Costs | ||
| Forecast | <1.25% | <1.25% | <1.25% | <1.50% | <1.50% | 3:00 PM | ISM Manufacturing PMI | ||
| Initial Reaction on Main Pairs | SWFX Sentiment Indexes | ||||||||
| Open Price | Close Price | % Change | Longs | Shorts | |||||
| AUD/USD | 0.80684 | 0.80429 | -0.32% | AUD/USD | 36.13% | 63.87% | |||
| EUR/USD | 1.24211 | 1.23962 | -0.20% | EUR/USD | 31.21% | 68.79% | |||
| USD/JPY | 109.229 | 109.39 | 0.15% | USD/JPY | 66.01% | 33.99% | |||
| NZD/USD | 0.73807 | 0.73536 | -0.37% | NZD/USD | 33.08% | 66.92% | |||