First, a review of last week’s events:
- EUR/USD. Recall that most experts (55% vs. 45%) voted for further strengthening of the dollar, calling the year's low of 1.1300 recorded on August 15 as the goal. This forecast came completely true, and the pair touched the bottom at this point on the last day of October, which was also facilitated by the optimism of the US President regarding the negotiations with China. True, in contrast to D. Trump, Larry Fink, head of one of the largest BlackRock investment funds, said he expected a full-scale trade war with China in the coming weeks.
The joy of the bulls was short-lived. The market met November with growing thirst for risky investments, which was supplemented by news of progress in the Brexit negotiations. As a result, the pair flew up to the height of 1.1455, after which everyone froze in anticipation of data on the American labor market, which, as we expected, somewhat strengthened the dollar. Thus, the number of new jobs created outside the agricultural sector (NFP) more than doubled (from 118K to 250K), which allowed the dollar to win back about 65 points. As a result, the pair completed the week in the same place where it began, in the zone 1.1390; - GBP/USD. As the experts expected, the British currency fell in the first half of the week, trying to reach the 2018 low, 1.2660. However, n the November start was turning for this pair as well. On the background of the news on possible signing of an agreement with the EU on Brexit soon, the pound showed an impressive growth, soaring by 340 points. The pair finished the week at 1.2960, in the zone which can be conditionally defined as the Pivot Point of the last three months;
- USD/JPY. The forecast for this pair was also absolutely accurate. Recall that the majority of experts (70%), supported by graphical analysis, voted for the strengthening of the dollar and the growth of the pair. The heights of 112.85 and 113.35 were named as targets. And It all happened. On Tuesday, the pair reached the resistance of 112.85, broke through it and fixed the weekly high at 113.38. After that, there was a retreat to the level of 112.55, and the last chord of the week sounded at the level of 113.20;
- Cryptocurrencies. Our forecast said that in the absence of really important news, the BTC/USD will continue to move in the narrow range of $6,325-6,660 with a predominance of the bearish sentiment. The next support was around $6,100. This scenario was realized with a small tolerance: pushing off from the resistance of 6.550, the pair went to the lower border of the lateral channel 6.320. The bears managed to break through it in the middle of the week, and the bitcoin dropped to the horizon of 6,240, but quickly turned around and climbed to the center of the side channel in the 6.425 zone. This confirmed the assumption that, knocking the rate down to the mining profitability level, the major players are beginning to actively buy coins, as a result of which the quotes are quickly returning to the initial level.
The bitcoin’s fate was repeated by most of the top altcoins: many coins, such as Ethereum (ETH/USD) and Litecoin (LTH/USD), finished the week with a slight, barely noticeable, decrease, while others, like Ripple (XRP/USD), ended the week with a zero result.
As for the forecast for the coming week, summarizing the opinions of a number of analysts, as well as forecasts made on the basis of a variety of methods of technical and graphical analysis, we can say the following:
- EUR/USD. We await two major events that can dramatically affect the fate of all dollar pairs this week. These are the mid-term elections in the USA on November 6 and the Fed's decision on the interest rate on November 8, followed, as usual, by the comment of the head of the Federal Reserve. One can also add to this the falling oil prices, quite unexpected statements by the US President and optimism about the agreement on British withdrawal from the EU, which has a positive effect on quotes not only for the pound, but also for the euro.
On this motley background, most experts (60%), supported by graphical analysis, sided with the European currency, waiting for the pair to rise to the zone 1.1480-1.1525. The nearest resistance is 1.1445.
The opposite point of view is supported by 40% of analysts and the overwhelming number of oscillators and trend indicators on D1. The bears' supporters talk about weak economic indicators of the Eurozone, problems of Italy and expect that the pair will again test the support of 1.1300, and, in case of its breakthrough, will sink to the horizon of 1.1210. The next target is at 1.1100;
- GBP/USD. In addition to advancing Brexit negotiations, last week's pound growth was supported by the statement from Bank of England CEO Mark Carney that the regulator is ready to raise the interest rate in any event, including even the “complicated Brexit”. This is about raising the rate to 1.5% within three years (previously 1% was mentioned).
However, the positive effect of Carney’s promises was short-lived, and 50% of experts expect the British currency to weaken already this week. In their opinion, the pair should strive again to the low of October 30 in the zone of 1.2700, and then even lower, to the minimum value of August, 1.2660.
An alternative point of view is expressed by 40% of experts. Supported by graphical analysis and almost 90% of oscillators and trend indicators on H4, they have voted for ongoing growth of the pair at least to the height of 1.3100. The next target is 1.3220.
Finally, the remaining 10% of the experts, together with the indicators on D1, have taken a neutral position, waiting for the sideways movement of the pair, basing on the support of 1.2820; - USD/JPY. On Monday, November 5, a meeting of the monetary policy committee of the Bank of Japan and a speech by the head of Bank Kuroda will take place. However, {1the market doesn't expect any surprises from either of these events. The bulls have a slight advantage (55% vs. 45%) among experts. The overwhelming majority of oscillators and trend indicators on both H4 and D1 are also colored green, although 10% of oscillators on D1 are already giving signals that the pair is overbought. The support levels are 112.55, 111.80 and 110.75, the resistance levels are 114.05 114.55;
- Cryptocurrencies. Despite the fact that the price of the bitcoin and of other top coins has been fluctuating in a fairly narrow range for a long time, it’s too early to say that this market has died. And although the total capitalization is still close to $200 billion, the daily trading volume remains quite impressive, about $4.2 billion. And the number of transactions (250 thousand per day) shows that traders are in no hurry to part with their digital assets.
Of course, there has been no influx of new large investors for a long time, but in the future, we can expect a growth of the quotes. It is expected that such large companies as ICE (the parent company of the NYSE) and Fidelity Investment will launch their trade crypto platforms by the end of the year, which will undoubtedly contribute to an increase in the investment flow. The specialists of such a respected bank as Morgan Stanley are rather optimistic about the future of the crypto market, they have published a relevant research.
In the meantime, on a relatively neutral news background, the forecast remains almost unchanged: the BTC/USD will continue to move in a narrow range of $6,200-6,660 with a predominance of the bearish sentiment. The next resistance is $6,780, the next support is around $6,100.
Roman Butko, NordFX
Notice: These materials should not be deemed a recommendation for investment or guidance for working on financial markets: they are for informative purposes only. Trading on financial markets is risky and can lead to a loss of money deposited.
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