Forex & Trading·May 20, 2026

The USD is little changed/mixed to start the North American session. What levels to watch?

The USD is mixed/little changed with the EURUSD, USDJPY and the GBPUSD all trading within 0.05% of unchanged on the day. The UK inflation data came in lower than expections helped by one off and base effects. The EU final CPI came in as expected. In the video above, I take a look at the 3 major currency pairs from a technical perspective. Meanwhile, the AUD and the NZD are the biggest movers as they benefit from higher stocks and lower yields as the NA session begins. Needless to say, the situation in the Middle east remain on a knifes edge but Trump says they will end the war very quickly but has not ruled out more conflict as well. Today, in review, UK inflation came in softer than expected in April, with headline CPI slowing to 2.8% year-over-year versus the 3.0% estimate and down from 3.3% previously, while core CPI eased to 2.5% from 3.1%. The biggest surprise came from services inflation, which fell sharply to 3.2% from 4.5%, helped by softer monthly price gains and a number of temporary factors. Much of the downside pressure came from housing-related costs as lower electricity and gas prices weighed on inflation, while comparisons to last year’s sharp increases in water and sewage bills also created favorable base effects. Airfares were another major drag, with prices falling this April compared to a large surge a year ago. Despite the softer report, the details suggest this is not necessarily a sign of a lasting shift lower in UK inflation. Instead, many of the declines were driven by one-off distortions and base effects, while the broader inflation outlook remains clouded by rising energy prices tied to the ongoing US-Iran conflict. Eurozone inflation accelerated further in April, with headline CPI confirmed at 3.0% year-over-year, up from 2.6% in March, largely driven by another sharp increase in energy prices tied to the ongoing Middle East conflict. Energy inflation rose 10.8% annually, a significant jump from 5.1% previously, while monthly energy prices climbed 3.0%, making it the primary driver behind the stronger headline reading. The better news for the ECB was that core inflation remained contained, easing slightly to 2.2% from 2.3%, suggesting that broader underlying price pressures have not yet fully absorbed the higher energy costs. Services inflation also cooled modestly to 3.0% from 3.3%, while food inflation held relatively steady near 2.4%. However, the overall report still points to building inflation pressures as elevated energy costs increasingly filter through the broader economy. With the US-Iran conflict continuing and no clear resolution in sight, inflation in the euro area is expected to remain supported through Q2 and likely into the early part of Q3. Looking at the pre-market for US stocks, futures are implying higher levels Dow industrial average is up 110 point S&P index is up 27 point NASDAQ index is up 176 points After the close: the long-awaited Nvidia earnings will be released with expectations of EPS of $1.77 on revenues of $78.9 billion (of course the whisper number would be higher). Looking at the US debt market, yields are modestly lower: 2 year yield 4.095%, -2.7 basis points 5 year yield 4.299%, -3.0 basis points 10 year yield 4.643%, -2.6 basis points 30 year yield 5.166%, -5 basis points in other markets: Gold is up $14.33 or 0.32% at $4497.77 as it reacts to the lower rates Silver is up $2.11 or 2.84% at $75.74. Crude oil is down $1.50 at $102.54 Bitcoin is up $500 and $77,305 This article was written by Greg Michalowski at investinglive.com.

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The USD is little changed/mixed to start the North American session. What levels to watch?
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The gist
5-point summary · 1 min

The USD is mixed/little changed with the EURUSD, USDJPY and the GBPUSD all trading within 0.05% of unchanged on the day. The UK inflation data came in lower than expections helped by one off and base effects. The EU final CPI came in as expected. In the video above, I take a look at the 3 major currency pairs from a technical perspective. Meanwhile, the AUD and the NZD are the biggest movers as they benefit from higher stocks and lower yields as the NA session begins. Needless to say, the situation in the Middle east remain on a knifes edge but Trump says they will end the war very quickly but has not ruled out more conflict as well. Today, in review, UK inflation came in softer than expected in April, with headline CPI slowing to 2.8% year-over-year versus the 3.0% estimate and down from 3.3% previously, while core CPI eased to 2.5% from 3.1%. The biggest surprise came from services inflation, which fell sharply to 3.2% from 4.5%, helped by softer monthly price gains and a number of temporary factors. Much of the downside pressure came from housing-related costs as lower electricity and gas prices weighed on inflation, while comparisons to last year’s sharp increases in water and sewage bills also created favorable base effects. Airfares were another major drag, with prices falling this April compared to a large surge a year ago. Despite the softer report, the details suggest this is not necessarily a sign of a lasting shift lower in UK inflation. Instead, many of the declines were driven by one-off distortions and base effects, while the broader inflation outlook remains clouded by rising energy prices tied to the ongoing US-Iran conflict. Eurozone inflation accelerated further in April, with headline CPI confirmed at 3.0% year-over-year, up from 2.6% in March, largely driven by another sharp increase in energy prices tied to the ongoing Middle East conflict. Energy inflation rose 10.8% annually, a significant jump from 5.1% previously, while monthly energy prices climbed 3.0%, making it the primary driver behind the stronger headline reading. The better news for the ECB was that core inflation remained contained, easing slightly to 2.2% from 2.3%, suggesting that broader underlying price pressures have not yet fully absorbed the higher energy costs. Services inflation also cooled modestly to 3.0% from 3.3%, while food inflation held relatively steady near 2.4%. However, the overall report still points to building inflation pressures as elevated energy costs increasingly filter through the broader economy. With the US-Iran conflict continuing and no clear resolution in sight, inflation in the euro area is expected to remain supported through Q2 and likely into the early part of Q3. Looking at the pre-market for US stocks, futures are implying higher levels Dow industrial average is up 110 point S&P index is up 27 point NASDAQ index is up 176 points After the close: the long-awaited Nvidia earnings will be released with expectations of EPS of $1.77 on revenues of $78.9 billion (of course the whisper number would be higher). Looking at the US debt market, yields are modestly lower: 2 year yield 4.095%, -2.7 basis points 5 year yield 4.299%, -3.0 basis points 10 year yield 4.643%, -2.6 basis points 30 year yield 5.166%, -5 basis points in other markets: Gold is up $14.33 or 0.32% at $4497.77 as it reacts to the lower rates Silver is up $2.11 or 2.84% at $75.74. Crude oil is down $1.50 at $102.54 Bitcoin is up $500 and $77,305 This article was written by Greg Michalowski at investinglive.com.

  • The USD is mixed/little changed with the EURUSD, USDJPY and the GBPUSD all trading within 0.05% of unchanged on the day.
  • Today, in review, UK inflation came in softer than expected in April, with headline CPI slowing to 2.8% year-over-year versus the 3.0% estimate and down from 3.3% previously, while core CPI eased to 2.5% from 3.1%.
  • The biggest surprise came from services inflation, which fell sharply to 3.2% from 4.5%, helped by softer monthly price gains and a number of temporary factors.
  • Eurozone inflation accelerated further in April, with headline CPI confirmed at 3.0% year-over-year, up from 2.6% in March, largely driven by another sharp increase in energy prices tied to the ongoing Middle East conflict.
  • Crude oil is down $1.50 at $102.54 Bitcoin is up $500 and $77,305 This article was written by Greg Michalowski at investinglive.com.
$1.77$78.9 billion$14.33$4497.77$2.11$75.74
In this article

The USD is mixed/little changed with the EURUSD, USDJPY and the GBPUSD all trading within 0.05% of unchanged on the day. The UK inflation data came in lower than expections helped by one off and base effects. The EU final CPI came in as expected. In the video above, I take a look at the 3 major currency pairs from a technical perspective. Meanwhile, the AUD and the NZD are the biggest movers as they benefit from higher stocks and lower yields as the NA session begins. Needless to say, the situation in the Middle east remain on a knifes edge but Trump says they will end the war very quickly but has not ruled out more conflict as well. Today, in review, UK inflation came in softer than expected in April, with headline CPI slowing to 2.8% year-over-year versus the 3.0% estimate and down from 3.3% previously, while core CPI eased to 2.5% from 3.1%. The biggest surprise came from services inflation, which fell sharply to 3.2% from 4.5%, helped by softer monthly price gains and a number of temporary factors. Much of the downside pressure came from housing-related costs as lower electricity and gas prices weighed on inflation, while comparisons to last year’s sharp increases in water and sewage bills also created favorable base effects. Airfares were another major drag, with prices falling this April compared to a large surge a year ago. Despite the softer report, the details suggest this is not necessarily a sign of a lasting shift lower in UK inflation. Instead, many of the declines were driven by one-off distortions and base effects, while the broader inflation outlook remains clouded by rising energy prices tied to the ongoing US-Iran conflict. Eurozone inflation accelerated further in April, with headline CPI confirmed at 3.0% year-over-year, up from 2.6% in March, largely driven by another sharp increase in energy prices tied to the ongoing Middle East conflict. Energy inflation rose 10.8% annually, a significant jump from 5.1% previously, while monthly energy prices climbed 3.0%, making it the primary driver behind the stronger headline reading. The better news for the ECB was that core inflation remained contained, easing slightly to 2.2% from 2.3%, suggesting that broader underlying price pressures have not yet fully absorbed the higher energy costs. Services inflation also cooled modestly to 3.0% from 3.3%, while food inflation held relatively steady near 2.4%. However, the overall report still points to building inflation pressures as elevated energy costs increasingly filter through the broader economy. With the US-Iran conflict continuing and no clear resolution in sight, inflation in the euro area is expected to remain supported through Q2 and likely into the early part of Q3. Looking at the pre-market for US stocks, futures are implying higher levels Dow industrial average is up 110 point S&P index is up 27 point NASDAQ index is up 176 points After the close: the long-awaited Nvidia earnings will be released with expectations of EPS of $1.77 on revenues of $78.9 billion (of course the whisper number would be higher). Looking at the US debt market, yields are modestly lower: 2 year yield 4.095%, -2.7 basis points 5 year yield 4.299%, -3.0 basis points 10 year yield 4.643%, -2.6 basis points 30 year yield 5.166%, -5 basis points in other markets: Gold is up $14.33 or 0.32% at $4497.77 as it reacts to the lower rates Silver is up $2.11 or 2.84% at $75.74. Crude oil is down $1.50 at $102.54 Bitcoin is up $500 and $77,305 This article was written by Greg Michalowski at investinglive.com.

Integrity note  ·  Xela does not rewrite or paraphrase article content. The excerpt above is the source publication's own words, sanitized for display. For the full piece — including any quotes, charts, or images — read it at Forexlive. Xela's rewritten version is off for this story, so there's no editorial angle attached — you're getting the source's reporting unfiltered. When the rewrite is on, we add a What this means block underneath with the operator/trader takeaway.

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The USDJPY is squeezing toward 2024 highs.
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The USDJPY is squeezing toward 2024 highs.

The USDJPY is getting squeezed higher, with the pair climbing to a new cycle high of 161.76. While that is the highest level since 2024, it is now closing in on the 2024 high at 161.919. A move above that level would put the pair at its highest level since 1986. The rally is increasingly taking on the characteristics of a short squeeze. Recall that in late April and early May, intervention fears sparked a sharp decline from 160.717 to a low near 155.017, as traders worried Japanese officials would step in aggressively to support the yen. Since then, the pair has steadily recovered, but traders remained cautious about pushing above the 2026 highs given the lingering threat of intervention. That caution disappeared today. The break to new highs has accelerated the upside momentum as short positions are being forced to reassess the long-held belief that Japanese authorities would not tolerate USDJPY trading above 160.00 for an extended period. While the risk of intervention remains and officials could still attempt to push the pair lower, the market is now nearly 200 pips above 160.00. At some point, traders fighting the trend have to decide whether it is worth staying in the trade and not screaming "Uncle". "Basta", "Enough", "Get me OUT". For many shorts, that moment may be arriving quickly. The market is forcing them to ask a simple question: How much longer do you want to fight a trend that keeps making new highs? This article was written by Greg Michalowski at investinglive.com.

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