The euro exchange rate fell sharply against the dollar after reaching maximum values, and updated with the session low. Note that in such a dynamic impact statement by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, who said that the U.S. economy remains under pressure from high unemployment and cuts in government spending, and too early tightening jeopardize its growth. In fact, the "premature tightening of monetary policy may lead to a temporary rise in interest rates, but also carries a significant risk of a potential slowdown or complete recovery and further fall in inflation," Bernanke said today in remarks prepared for the Joint Committee of Congress in Washington. Monetary policy has "substantial benefits," he said. Bernanke is the head of the most aggressive economic stimulus for the centenary history of the Federal Reserve in an effort to stimulate growth and reduce bloated unemployment rate which is 7.5%, which will complete the longest since the Great Depression of the recession. While, according to some, the labor market shows modest improvement, the Fed chief noted that "high levels of unemployment and under-utilization of labor resources is extremely costly."

The yen fell against the dollar, after it became known, the Bank of Japan left monetary policy unchanged and raised its forecast for growth in the national economy, despite the volatility in the financial markets and the risks associated with a slowing of growth in world GDP. Note that the monetary policy of the central bank aims to achieve the inflation target of 2%, with a focus on the Japanese authorities have focused monetary base. According to the published decision, the Bank of Japan will annually purchase government bonds of 60-70 trillion yen (603-704 billion dollars). These main lines have been confirmed in the course of the meeting. However, many economists have expressed the view that to achieve the inflation target within two years is not possible. While the decision on the policy was adopted unanimously, board member Takahide Kiut suggested that the central bank should promise to achieve the inflation target "in the medium and long term," and the current policy should be characterized as "intense action, the duration of the which is about two years" . This proposal was rejected by the other nine members of the board. The Bank of Japan did not mention the recent increase in yields on Japanese bonds, which alarmed the market. Meanwhile, it is worth noting that the Bank of Japan raised its assessment of the economy the fifth month in a row, as it sees signs of consolidating the recovery. In a statement, the Bank of Japan noted that the economy "has stopped weakening and is showing some early signs of growth." Earlier, the Japanese government also increased the estimate of the economy, reflecting the improvement in economic conditions.

The pound fell against the dollar after the Bank of England published the minutes of its meeting of 8-9 May, in which all members of the MPC voted unanimously to maintain the interest rate at 0.5%. As for the question of continuing the program of asset purchases at £ 375 billion, the second consecutive month, 6 members of the MPC voted "for", while three voted against the policy. The head of the Central Bank Governor Mervyn King, Paul Fisher and David Miles, voted "no", chose to expand the program by 25 billion pounds up to £ 400 billion as stated in the report, "In general, the economic news this month can be viewed as favorable, and it is expected that by the end of the 2nd quarter of the economy by 0.7% higher than the expectations of the Committee, published three months ago." However, the monetary authorities have stressed that by historical standards, growth prospects remain unfavorable, and prevented the possibility of accelerating inflation and maintain CPI above 2% target over the next two years. Most MPC members do not consider it necessary to increase the incentive program after the expansion of QE in February. However, Mervyn King, Paul Fisher and David Miles said the new round of expansion of the program "will lead to an earlier normalization of the policy when the situation requires."

In addition, it was reported that retail sales in the UK fell unexpectedly in April. The volume of retail sales including automotive fuel, fell by 1.3% compared with the previous month, against the forecast unchanged. Sales excluding fuel fell by 1.4% compared with an expected 0.1% growth. With motor fuel sales rose 0.5% in April, in annual terms, while the expected 2% increase. Sales excluding fuel rose 0.2% compared with the previous year, the expected 1.8% growth.

European stocks were little changed near a five-year high after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke signalled the central bank will maintain stimulus measures to support the U.S. economic recovery.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.2 percent to 310.59 at the close of trading. The gauge, which yesterday climbed to its highest level since June 2008, has rallied 97 percent since March 2009 as European Central Bank President Mario Draghi pledged to preserve the euro and the Federal Reserve embarked on three rounds of stimulus.

The U.S. economy remains hampered by high unemployment and government spending cuts, and tightening policy too soon would endanger the recovery, Bernanke said today in testimony prepared for a hearing at the Joint Economic Committee of Congress in Washington. The Fed chairman is leading the most aggressive economic stimulus in the central bank's 100-year history in an effort to spur growth in the world's largest economy and reduce an unemployment rate that stands at 7.5 percent.

In the U.K., Bank of England Governor Mervyn King was defeated for a fourth month in his bid to expand stimulus. Six members of the Monetary Policy Committee voted to keep quantitative easing at 375 billion pounds ($568 billion) this month, according to minutes from the BOE's May 8-9 meeting. King, David Miles and Paul Fisher backed increasing it by 25 billion pounds.

National benchmark indexes climbed in 13 of the 18 western European markets.

FTSE 100 6,840.27 +36.40 +0.53% CAC 40 4,051.11 +14.93 +0.37% DAX 8,530.89 +58.69 +0.69%

Metro jumped 10 percent to 27.34 euros, its biggest gain since November 2008. Morgan Stanley upgraded the retailer to overweight, the equivalent of a buy rating, from equal weight, and added the stock to its best ideas list, citing a possible reversal of declining cash and carry sales, the stabilization of Metro's MediaMarkt stores and potential disposals.

Britvic Plc (BVIC), the U.K. maker of Robinsons Barley Water, surged 11 percent to 522.5 pence, its highest price since at least 2005, after reporting first-half pretax profit of 37.5 million pounds, beating the average analyst estimate of 27.4 million pounds.

Lagardere SCA, France's largest publisher, advanced 3.4 percent to 28.75 euros after JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded the stock to neutral from underweight, citing its underperformance relative to other media shares.

Pandora tumbled 11 percent to 200 Danish kroner after Prometheus sold 13 million shares, raising 2.6 billion kroner ($451 million) in gross proceeds. Prometheus will retain a 40.9 percent stake in the company.

Wm Morrison Supermarkets (MRW) Plc lost 2.3 percent to 282.6 pence after UBS AG sold 103 million shares on behalf of an institutional seller at 280 pence each.

Oil prices fell, approaching at the same time to $ 103 per barrel, after data showed an unexpected rise in gasoline inventories in the U.S., thus causing concern that summer demand may be weaker than expected.

U.S. Energy Information Administration said that gasoline inventories rose by 3 million barrels last week, suggesting that U.S. domestic fuel market was well stocked for the start of the peak driving season.

Note that the dynamics of the trade is also reflected in the speech of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke, who said that the U.S. economy remains under pressure from high unemployment and cuts in government spending, and too early tightening jeopardize its growth. In fact, the "premature tightening of monetary policy may lead to a temporary rise in interest rates, but also carries a significant risk of a potential slowdown or complete recovery and further decline in inflation. Monetary policy provides" substantial benefits, "he said.

Bernanke is the head of the most aggressive economic stimulus for the centenary history of the Federal Reserve in an effort to stimulate growth and reduce bloated unemployment rate which is 7.5%, which will complete the longest since the Great Depression of the recession. While, according to some, the labor market shows modest improvement, the Fed chief noted that "high levels of unemployment and under-utilization of labor resources is extremely costly."

It is also worth adding that after Bernanke attention of many market participants shifted to the publication of minutes of the meeting FOMC. Note that investors will also closely monitor the output index of purchasing managers in May for China, the U.S. and the Eurozone, which will be presented tomorrow. Polls show they can show a slight increase from April, but not enough to dispel concerns about sluggish growth prospects.

The cost of the July futures on U.S. light crude oil WTI (Light Sweet Crude Oil) fell to 94.94 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

July futures price for North Sea Brent crude oil mixture fell $ 0.41 to $ 103.23 a barrel on the London exchange ICE Futures Europe.

Gold prices rose sharply after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke warned that the U.S. economy remains under pressure from high unemployment and cuts in government spending, and too rapid tightening of policy could undermine growth. In fact, prices have recovered from the $ 1,387 per ounce to session highs at $ 1,409 an ounce, but later the value of the precious metal fell sharply, dropping back below $ 1,400, and updating the session low.

Traders said the consolidation above strong technical resistance level at around $ 1,400 an ounce could raise prices to $ 1425, where the next resistance level.

Recall that on Tuesday, the head of the New York Fed, William Dudley and St. Louis James Bullard said that continued economic progress will be needed before they are supported by the reduction of bond purchases.

We also note that gold has had little support strong demand from China, which is the second-largest gold consumer after India. Note that the Shanghai gold prices fell slightly, but were still about $ 30 higher than the spot price of gold, which indicates that Chinese demand was higher because of the gold was cheaper for local buyers. But buying in India has slowed down, as the central bank tries to curb the trade deficit by reducing imports of gold and silver.

In addition, the data showed that stocks in the SPDR Gold Trust fell Tuesday by 0.8%, reaching 1,023.08 tons, which is the minimum for more than four years.

The cost of the June gold futures on COMEX today dropped to 1374.60 dollars an ounce.

EUR/USD $1.2800, $1.2850, $1.2900, $1.2925, $1.3000, $1.3025

USD/JPY Y101.50, Y102.40, Y102.50, Y103.00, Y103.25

GBP/USD $1.5150, $1.5200

USD/CHF Chf0.9680

EUR/CHF Chf1.2400, Chf1.2500

AUD/USD $0.9800, $0.9900

U.S. stock futures rose as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke's testimony on the economy and the central bank's asset purchases.

Global Stocks:

Nikkei 15,627.26 +246.24 +1.60%

Hang Seng 23,261.08 -105.29 -0.45%

Shanghai Composite 2,302.4 -2.71 -0.12%

FTSE 6,811.94 +8.07 +0.12%

CAC 4,023.93 -12.25 -0.30%

DAX 8,467.07 -5.13 -0.06%

Crude oil $95.85 -0.32%

Gold $1392.80 +1.10%

Canadian monthly retail sales were softer than expected in March, dragged by lower gasoline prices, marking the weakest showing in three months.

Sales were unchanged at 39.55 billion Canadian dollars ($38.52 billion), following a 0.7% gain in February, which was revised down from the originally estimated 0.8%, Statistics Canada said Wednesday.

The consensus call was for sales to edge up 0.1%, according to a report from Royal Bank of Canada. Year-on-year sales increased 1.1%.

Excluding the auto sector, sales shrank 0.2% on a monthly basis in March following a 0.7% increase the prior month, contrary to an expected 0.1% increase.

But sales volume, which eliminates price changes and feeds into economic output figures, expanded 0.7%, suggesting retail sales made a positive contribution to the month's gross domestic product.

08:00 Eurozone Current account, adjusted, bln March 16.3 14.2 25.9

08:30 United Kingdom Bank of England Minutes May

08:30 United Kingdom Retail Sales (MoM) April -0.7% 0.0% -1.3%

08:30 United Kingdom Retail Sales (YoY) April -0.5% +2.0% +0.5%

08:30 United Kingdom PSNB, bln April 16.7 7.6 8.0

10:00 Eurozone EU Economic Summit May

10:00 United Kingdom CBI industrial order books balance May -25 -17 -20

10:00 Switzerland SNB Chairman Jordan Speaks

The yen fell to the weakest in three years against the euro after Bank of Japan policy makers affirmed a plan to double the monetary base over two years and their statement showed no concern with rising bond yields. Japan's currency declined versus 13 of its 16 major peers after a government report showed the trade deficit swelled more in April than analysts forecast. BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda told reporters in Tokyo that the central bank will conduct its debt purchases in a flexible manner, and that the recent volatility in government securities isn't yet affecting the economy. The central bank will expand the supply of money in the economy by 60 to 70 trillion yen a year, as pledged in April, the BOJ said. Japanese exports rose 3.8 percent from a year earlier, the Finance Ministry said, less than the median 5.4 percent estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The trade deficit expanded to 879.9 billion yen, the widest in three months.

The dollar dropped for a third day against the euro before Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke addresses Congress on the outlook for the U.S. economy. The dollar fell against the euro before Bernanke testifies to the Joint Economic Committee in Washington. The Fed is buying $85 billion a month in Treasury and mortgage debt to push down borrowing costs and spur growth.

The franc fell to the weakest since May 2011 versus the euro after Swiss National Bank President Thomas Jordan said an adjustment of the currency's cap was possible. The franc weakened to a one-year low against the euro after Swiss National Bank President Jordan said a shift of the cap on the currency and negative interest rates are among measures it may take to prevent a tightening of monetary conditions.

The pound declined to a four-week low against the euro after a government report showed U.K. retail sales unexpectedly dropped last month. The U.K. currency slid to a six-week low versus the dollar after minutes of the Bank of England's May 8-9 policy meeting showed Governor Mervyn King was defeated for a fourth month in his bid to expand stimulus. King, David Miles and Paul Fisher maintained their campaign to increase so-called quantitative easing by 25 billion pounds ($37.7 billion) from the current 375 billion pounds.

EUR / USD: during the European session, the pair rose to $ 1.2955

GBP / USD: during the European session, the pair fell to $ 1.5073

USD / JPY: during the European session, the pair rose to Y103.15

At 12:30 GMT Canada will publish the change in the volume of retail sales, including excluding vehicle sales for March. In the U.S., will be released at 14:00 GMT volume of sales in the secondary market for April, at 14:30 GMT - the data on stocks of crude oil from the Ministry of Energy. At 18:00 GMT will be publication of the minutes of the Fed meeting.

EUR/USD

Offers $1.2970/300, $1.2950/70

Bids $1.2905/00, $1.2880, $1.2860/40, $1.2820/00, $1.2790-70

GBP/USD

Offers $1.5260/65, $1.5230/35, $1.5200, $1.5150, $1.5125, $1.5100

Bids $1.5075, $1.5060/50

AUD/USD

Offers $0.9880, $0.9860, $0.9845/50, $0.9825/30, $0.9790/95

Bids $0.9735/30, $0.9720, $0.9710, $0.9700, $0.9650

EUR/GBP

Offers stg0.8650/60, stg0.8620, stg0.8600, stg0.8580/85

Bids stg0.8445/40, stg0.8430/20, stg0.8400

EUR/JPY

Offers Y134.00, Y133.80/85, Y133.50

Bids Y132.60/50, Y132.25/20, Y132.00, Y131.70/60, Y131.55/50, Y131.30

USD/JPY

Offers Y104.00, Y103.60, Y103.50, Y103.40, Y103.20/30, Y102.95/00

Bids Y102.30/25, Y102.05/00, Y101.85/80, Y101.50

Stocks in Europe declined from their highest level in almost five years before Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke testifies on the outlook for the world's biggest economy.

The European Union's leaders meet at a summit in Brussels today, where they may step up efforts against tax evasion.

Bank of England Governor Mervyn King was defeated for a fourth month in his bid to expand stimulus. Six members of the Monetary Policy Committee voted to keep quantitative easing at 375 billion pounds ($568 billion) this month, the central bank said in the minutes of its May 8-9 meeting. King, David Miles and Paul Fisher backed increasing it by 25 billion pounds.

U.K. retail sales unexpectedly fell in April, a report showed. Sales including fuel declined 1.3 percent from March, the Office for National Statistics said in London. The median forecast in a survey called for a 0.1 percent increase.

Wm Morrison lost 2.8 percent to 281.3 pence. UBS placed 103 million shares on behalf of an institutional seller at 280 pence each, according to terms of the sale obtained by Bloomberg News.

Pandora tumbled 11 percent to 199.90 Danish kroner. Prometheus sold 13 million shares, raising 2.6 billion kroner ($451 million) in gross proceeds, joint bookrunner JPMorgan Chase & Co. said in a statement. Prometheus will retain a 40.9 percent stake in Pandora.

Metro jumped 5.6 percent to 26.17 euros, its biggest gain in four months. Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to overweight from equal weight, meaning investors should buy the shares. Morgan Stanley also added the stock to its best ideas list, citing the possibility of reversing declining cash and carry sales, the stabilization of Metro's MediaMarkt stores and potential disposals.

Lagardere SCA, France's largest publisher, advanced 2.9 percent to 28.60 euros after JPMorgan upgraded the shares to neutral from underweight, citing their underperformance relative to other media stocks.

FTSE 100 6,792.4 -11.47 -0.17%

CAC 40 4,013.83 -22.35 -0.55%

DAX 8,451.35 -20.85 -0.25%

Retail sales in the UK declined unexpectedly in April, the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics showed Wednesday.

Retail sales volume, including auto fuel, fell 1.3 percent month-on-month in April against forecast for a 0.1 percent increase. Sales, excluding fuel, dropped 1.4 percent compared with an expected 0.1 percent growth.

Including auto fuel, sales rose 0.5 percent in April from last year, while expectations were for a 2 percent increase. Sales, excluding fuel, were 0.2 percent higher year-on-year. However, the pace of growth was weaker than the expected 1.8 percent expansion.

EUR/USD $1.2800, $1.2850, $1.2900, $1.2925, $1.3000, $1.3025

USD/JPY Y101.50, Y102.40, Y102.50, Y103.00, Y103.25

GBP/USD $1.5150, $1.5200

USD/CHF Chf0.9680

EUR/CHF Chf1.2400

AUD/USD $0.9800, $0.9900

Asian stocks held gains, with the regional benchmark index headed for its highest close since June 2008, after the Bank of Japan maintained its plan to expand the monetary base.

Nikkei 225 15,627.26 +246.24 +1.60%

S&P/ASX 200 5,165.4 -14.66 -0.28%

Shanghai Composite 2,302.54 -2.57 -0.11%

Sony Corp. surged 7.4 percent in Tokyo after a person familiar with the matter said the company's board will evaluate spinning off its entertainment division.

Sojitz Corp., a Japanese importer of rare-earth metals, surged 13 percent after the Nikkei reported the trading company's profit will rise.

Seven West Media Ltd. sank 7.9 percent after KKR & Co. sold a stake in Australia's most-watched television broadcaster

00:30 Australia Westpac Consumer Confidence May -5.1% -7.0%

04:00 Japan BoJ Interest Rate Decision 0.10% 0.10% 0.10%

04:00 Japan BoJ Monetary Policy Statement

07:30 Japan BOJ Press Conference

The dollar fell for a third day against the euro before Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke addresses Congress amid concern he will disappoint expectations for a paring back of monetary stimulus.

The greenback weakened yesterday after St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said the central bank should keep buying bonds and New York Fed President William Dudley said it had previously been overly optimistic about growth. The purchases should be maintained because markets indicate they are improving financial conditions and can be adjusted based on how the economy changes, Bullard said yesterday in prepared remarks in Frankfurt. He votes on the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee this year. New York Fed President Dudley said he hasn't decided whether bond-buying should be increased or cut. The Fed is waiting for a self-reinforcing economy before it ends stimulus, he said. It was too optimistic about economic prospects in the 2009-2012 period, he said.

The yen erased earlier declines against the dollar after Bank of Japan policy makers retained their monetary-base target and their statement made no reference to rising bond yields. The BOJ affirmed a plan to double the monetary base over two years at the end of its policy meeting. The central bank will expand the supply of money in the economy by 60 trillion yen ($585 billion) to 70 trillion yen a year, as pledged in April, it said today.

Japan's exports missed estimates in April and the trade deficit swelled, data today showed.

EUR / USD: during the Asian session, the pair rose to $ 1.2940

GBP / USD: during the Asian session, the pair is trading around $ 1.5150

USD / JPY: during the Asian session, the pair is trading around Y102.50

A light EZ and US data calendar with key event being Fed Bernanke Testimony at 1400GMT, overshadowing later FOMC Minutes. UK calendar full of interest, UK retail sales and PSNB due at 0830GMT, along with BOE MPC Minutes, followed by the IMF press conference on the conclusion of the mission fopr the 2013 Article VI Consultations with the UK at 1100GMT.

Change % Change Last

GOLD 1,371.50 -12.60 -0.91%

OIL (WTI) 96.16 -0.55 -0.57%

Change % Change Last

Nikkei 225 15,381.02 +20.21 +0.13%

S&P/ASX 200 5,180.1 -28.93 -0.56%

Shanghai Composite 2,300.61 +0.62 +0.03%

FTSE 100 6,803.87 +48.24 +0.71%

CAC 40 4,036.18 +13.33 +0.33%

DAX 8,472.2 +16.37 +0.19%

Dow +53.76 15,389.04 +0.35%

Nasdaq +5.69 3,502.12 +0.16%

S&P +2.91 1,669.20 +0.17%

(pare/closed(00:00 GMT +02:00)/change, %)

EUR/USD $1,2905 +0,16%

GBP/USD $1,5149 -0,71%

USD/CHF Chf0,9702 +0,38%

USD/JPY Y102,50 +0,23%

EUR/JPY Y132,29 +0,42%

GBP/JPY Y155,29 -0,46%

AUD/USD $0,9802 -0,03%

NZD/USD $0,8166 -0,09%

USD/CAD C$1,0268 +0,26%

00:30 Australia Westpac Consumer Confidence May -5.1%

04:00 Japan BoJ Interest Rate Decision 0.10% 0.10%

04:00 Japan BoJ Monetary Policy Statement

07:30 Japan BOJ Press Conference

08:00 Eurozone Current account, adjusted, bln March 16.3 14.2

08:30 United Kingdom Bank of England Minutes May

08:30 United Kingdom Retail Sales (MoM) April -0.7% 0.0%

08:30 United Kingdom Retail Sales (YoY) April -0.5% +2.0%

08:30 United Kingdom PSNB, bln April 16.7 7.6

10:00 Eurozone EU Economic Summit May

10:00 United Kingdom CBI industrial order books balance May -25 -17

10:00 Switzerland SNB Chairman Jordan Speaks

12:30 Canada Retail Sales, m/m March +0.8% +0.2%

12:30 Canada Retail Sales ex Autos, m/m March +0.7% +0.2%

14:00 U.S. Existing Home Sales April 4.92 4.99

14:00 U.S. Fed Chairman Bernanke Testifies

14:00 U.S. Treasury Sec Lew Speaks

14:30 U.S. Crude Oil Inventories May -0.6

18:00 U.S. FOMC meeting minutes May