Battle of the Bankers: USD/CAD in FocusThe USD/CAD might be a popular pair to trade this week with the Bank of Canada (BoC) releasing its latest interest rate decision at the exact same time that US Federal Reserve Chairman begins the second day of his Semiannual Monetary Policy Report to Congress. These events coincide at 10am Wednesday (EST).
The Bank of Canada is expected to maintain its interest rate at 4.50%. In its previous meeting, the Bank announced its eighth consecutive rate increase but also mentioned that it would take a break to observe the economy's response to higher borrowing costs. The Bank stated that it plans to keep the policy rate at its current level while assessing the effects of the cumulative rate hikes if economic developments align with the Monetary Policy Report outlook. However, this pause is subject to change, and the strong job numbers for January, which indicated the addition of 150,000 jobs, as well as resilient consumer spending could persuade the Bank to opt for a rate hike instead of a pause.
If the BoC fails to surprise, it might be what it signals for its meeting next month that becomes the more interesting focal point on Wednesday.
Jerome Powell, the US Federal Reserve Chair, is scheduled to testify before the Senate Banking Committee and House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday and Wednesday morning. During these hearings, he is expected to face tough questions regarding inflation and potential future interest rate increases. This will be Powell's initial testimony since the Republican Party gained control of the House.
Furthermore, on Friday, the February US Non-Farm Payrolls report is predicted to reveal the creation of 200,000 jobs in the previous month. This marks a deceleration in job growth compared to January's surprising surge, which added 517,000 jobs to the economy in the first month of the year.
