Summary:

• Bitcoin is back below $10k

• European equities advance following upbeat Asian session

• Investors await Jerome Powell testimony in Congress this week

As Monday’s economic calendar is almost empty we have not seen any hectic moves in the morning. In the afternoon we will get some data from the US housing market that may help USD recover as it is the worst performing currency in the G10 basket along with CAD. On the other hand, NOK and GBP outperform its peers. Gold edges higher on the back of weaker dollar while oil posts minor decline.

As the new trading week is unfolding Bitcoin is losing momentum being almost 5% down on the day at the time of writing. Nevertheless there were no adverse revelations over the weekend which could have depressed the price, actually there were some upbeat reports with the Russian story being a cherry on top.

Make no mistake, inflation is a live concern on the markets. Even though the storm on equities has calmed down, question marks remain unanswered. Investors will look to the data and Powell’s speech for clues this week.

The Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn stated in his speech on Monday that he wishes Britain will stay in the EU customs union. This is quite an important statement after a group of Tory members rebelled from the PM Theresa May’s camp. According to sources in the Britain’s politics May’s opposition may have a majority in Parliament now thus the scope of PM’s action may be limited.

Jerome Powell is overtaking the position of Fed Chairman at the very tricky point therefore investors’ attention will be drawn to his testimony in Congress this week. They will also focus on the inflation data from US, Canada and Europe.

The past week belonged to the US dollar as it marked its second best week this year fuelling by more hawkish than expected FOMC minutes. However, the story seems to be coming to an end at the beginning of the new trading week as the greenback is edging lower against its all major peers in G10.