Three central banks deliver interest rate decisions this week, with the Federal Reserve's Wednesday announcement and press conference standing as the marquee event for EUR/USD and other major dollar pairs. US retail sales, Canadian inflation data, and rate decisions from the Bank of England and the Bank of Japan round out a heavy calendar for currency traders.
Fed decision and press conference take center stage
The Federal Reserve's interest rate decision lands on Wednesday, September 16 at 18:00 UTC. Fed Chair Jerome Powell holds a press conference following at 18:30 UTC. Traders will scrutinize the updated Summary of Economic Projections alongside Powell's remarks for guidance on the terminal rate path and the balance between sticky inflation and a cooling labor market. The event is expected to trigger sharp two-way moves across equities, gold, and major USD pairs including EUR/USD.
Retail sales and Canadian CPI set the tone beforehand
Hours before the Fed decision, US retail sales are due the same Wednesday morning, with consensus pointing to a 0.3% monthly rebound after a 0.6% contraction the prior month. An upside surprise would reaffirm consumer resilience and lift Treasury yields ahead of the Fed announcement. Earlier in the week, Canada reports its Consumer Price Index on Monday, September 14 at 12:30 UTC, with core CPI forecast to edge up from 2.3% to 2.5% year-over-year, a print that will move the Canadian dollar against the greenback.
BoE and BoJ decisions follow later in the week
The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee announces its own rate decision on Thursday, September 17 at 11:00 UTC, with the prior vote split at three members favoring a hike against six for holding steady. The voting split and the tone of the minutes matter more than the headline rate itself for GBP/USD direction.
The Bank of Japan closes out the week on Friday, September 18, with its policy statement tentatively due at 02:30 UTC and a press conference at 06:30 UTC. Any signal on further policy normalization would trigger unwinding in yen-carry trades and swings in USD/JPY.
Source: MQL5: Traders' Blogs
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