Foreign Exchange Market Update

May 29, 2026

Chicago Business Barometer Soars to Highest Level Since January 2022

Chicago-area business activity soared to its highest level in over four years in May. Chicago business barometer spiked to 62.7 in May from 49.2 in April, with a reading above 50 indicating growth. The Chicago business barometer saw its joint second-largest monthly increase since its inception in February 1967, reaching its highest level since January 2022.

The surge in the headline index came as the new orders index soared by 18.2 points to its highest level since January 2022, while the production index shot up by 11.9 points to its highest level since July 2022. The order backlogs index also jumped by 9.4 points, returning to expansionary territory but remaining below the March level. Meanwhile, the employment index dipped by 1.3 points but remained above the level seen in March. The prices paid index increased by 3.5 points to its highest level since May 2022. 05/29/2026 - 10:00:00 (RTTNews)

Eurozone

Euro traded at 1.1682 against USD at 9:00 AM PST

Germany's inflation slowed in May, but core price pressures accelerated on higher service costs, and unemployment declined in April after a notable increase. Reflecting the slowdown in energy price growth, consumer price inflation weakened to 2.6% in May. Likewise, EU harmonized inflation slowed to 2.7% from 2.9% a month ago.

However, the core inflation that excludes food and energy accelerated from 2.3% to 2.5% in the previous month. Service inflation climbed to 3.1% from 2.8%, while goods prices grew at a slower pace of 2.2% compared to 2.9% a month ago. Energy prices logged an annual growth of 6.6% compared to the 10.1% rise in April. Food price inflation eased to 0.4% from 1.2%. The decline in headline inflation was due to the government's so-called tax rebate.

Elsewhere, the Federal Employment Agency reported that the German jobless rate dropped from 6.4% in April to 6.3% in May. The rate was seen unchanged at 6.3%. The number of unemployed declined by 12,000 in May, partly following a 19,000 increase in April. The decline was mainly due to the counter-effect following the weak April figures.

Despite a decline in unemployment, the spring upturn has not really gained momentum this year. The unemployment rate remained stable at an adjusted 3.8% in April. The number of unemployed decreased by 13,000 from the previous month to 1.67 million. On an unadjusted basis, the jobless rate rose from 3.8% in the previous year to 3.9% in April. 05/29/2026 - 10:35:00 (RTTNews)

Italy's economy expanded at a steady rate in the first quarter. Gross domestic product (GDP) advanced 0.3% sequentially, the same pace as in the fourth quarter. In the flash report, the rate of increase was 0.2%. On the demand side, investments, final consumption, and net foreign demand contributed positively to the GDP in the March quarter.

The expenditure breakdown showed that household final consumption grew 0.3%, and gross fixed investment rose 0.1%. General government spending remained unchanged, while net external demand was favorable as exports climbed 2.2% amid a 0.7% fall in imports.

On the supply side, a negative cyclical trend was recorded in agriculture by 0.5%, while it remained stationary in industry. Services contributed positively by 0.4%. Compared to last year, GDP also advanced 0.8% in the first quarter. 05/29/2026 - 09:11:00 (RTTNews)

The French economy contracted in the first quarter due to the fall in exports and investment, while consumer price inflation accelerated to the highest level in more than two years in May, driven by the increase in energy prices. Gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 0.1% in the first quarter from the preceding period.

The expenditure-side breakdown showed that household consumption dropped 0.2% after rising 0.3% in the prior quarter. Meanwhile, government spending growth improved to 0.3% from 0.2%. Gross fixed capital formation fell back sharply by 0.6% after rising 0.2%, mainly due to the steep drop in construction investment. Overall, final domestic demand excluding inventories contributed negatively to GDP growth by 0.2 % points.

In the first quarter, exports fell sharply by 3.5% following a 0.9% rise, reflecting the decline in aeronautics exports. At the same time, imports were down 0.9% compared to 1.0% decrease a quarter ago. Overall, the contribution of foreign trade to GDP growth was a negative 0.9%. Finally, the contribution of changes in inventories to GDP growth was strongly positive, by 1.0%.

Consumer price inflation rose to 2.4% in May from 2.2% in April. This was the highest since February 2024. Similarly, harmonized inflation advanced from 2.5% to 2.8%. Month-on-month, consumer prices edged up 0.1%, after rising 1.0% in the prior month. The harmonized index of consumer prices (HICP) also moved up 0.1% following a 1.2% gain. Household spending declined in April due to the renewed fall in energy consumption. Household spending fell 0.5%, in contrast to the 0.9% rise in March. 05/29/2026 - 08:20:00 (RTTNews)

Taiwan Q1 GDP Growth Improves

Taiwan's economic growth accelerated in the first quarter. Gross domestic product (GDP) advanced 14.55% year-on-year in the March quarter, faster than the following 12.95% increase in the December quarter.

On the demand side, real exports of goods and services grew by 35.76%, driven by the strong external demand for artificial intelligence and related infrastructure. Gross capital formation expanded 5.92% amid more investments in machinery and equipment, intellectual property products, and transport equipment.

Private final consumption rose 4.74% as households spent more on information and communication, entertainment, transport, and booming outbound tourism, as well as securities and funds transaction fees, boosted by a flourishing financial market. On a quarter-on-quarter, seasonally adjusted annualized basis, GDP rose 6.94% in the first quarter. 05/29/2026 - 11:26:00 (RTTNews)