Daily summary: Wall Street wavers on the last trading day of February

• Major European indices finished today's session mostly lower, with DAX losing 0.11% as fresh CPI figures for Spain and France showed inflation accelerated for a second month. Nevertheless on a monthly basis the STOXX 600 and the DAX rose 1.9% and 1.5% respectively, marking a second consecutive monthly gain. Tomorrow market attention will focus on inflation data from Germany

• US indices swing between gains and losses as investors try to digest the latest data. US single-family home prices in December increased at their softest pace since July 2020, US CB Consumer Confidence index fell sharply to 102.9, while inflation expectations eased slightly.  Chicago PMI contracted for a sixth consecutive month in February, highlighting the impact of higher interest rates on the economy. 

• The three major Wall Street indices are now heading for a monthly decline as solid data published earlier this month reinforced the case for further monetary tightening.  Additionally BofA analysts take into consideration that FED may need to raise rates to 6.0%.

• Oil prices rose over 2.5% as the supply of crude and petroleum products in the United States fell in December to 19.49 million bpd, the lowest since March 202, according to EIA. On the other hand OPEC’s oil production jumped by 150,000 bpd in February and Russia managed to export 7.32 million bpd of crude oil and crude oil products last month, despite sanctions. 

• Natgas pulled back slightly today, but remains at the highest level since early February. The weather forecasts are changing and lower temperatures are expected this weekend

• Gold bounced off recent lows and is testing crucial support at $1830, while silver is moving towards resistance at $21.00. 

• Dollar weakened after publication of Conference Board data, however managed to regain strength later in the session. EURUSD retreated from session high at 1.0645  below 1.06 level. The USDCAD pair jumped above resistance at 1.36 as Canadian GDP unexpectedly stalled in Q4.

• Major cryptocurrencies are trading mixed, however the scale of moves is rather limited. Bitcoin oscillates below $23,500, while Ethereum hovers around $1640.

GBPUSD pair retreated towards local support at 1.2075, which coincides with 100 EMA (purple line) as dollar regained strength in the evening. Nearest resistance to watch is located around 1.2150. Source: xStation5