A preview of Friday's (3 April) nonfarm payroll data from Steve Englander of CitiFX:
Says there may more downside than upside risk for the USD
Cites:
- Market is still long USD
- A weak outcome would confirm fears that the Q1 slowdown was no aberration
- One strong number is unlikely to convince investors a June rates lift-off for the Federal Reserve is live
- Citi forecast 220k is, he says, is on the soft side and "looks more in line with mixed labor data precursors than the consensus optimism."
He concludes: "USDJPY downside is likely to be the trade"
-
Note, the Bloomberg 'expected' at this stage is 245K