Session Recap: Risk appetite recedes

Despite some intraday movements, most crosses in the FX market continue to consolidate within their weekly ranges with the dollar mixed across the board. A string of minor European and US data has been largely ignored, although risk aversion started to pick up at the beginning of the NY session. The EUR/USD faced resistance at the 1.3160 area and settled somewhat lower, while the pound and the yen trade virtually unchanged against the USD. The Loonie is among the worst performers, weighed by domestic data, while the AUD holds onto gains, but off daily highs. US equities opened cautiously after Wednesday's surge, while gold trades below $1600 an ounce.

Main Headlines in Europe (in chronological order):

Spain 4Q Gross Domestic Product (QoQ): -0.8% vs -0.3% (3Q)

Spain Gross Domestic Product (YoY) falls to -1.9% in 4Q from -1.6% in 3Q

Germany: Unemployment drops by 3K in February

Identifying the true costs of sequestration as March 1 deadline looms

European markets up on Thursday, Italy pressured as Italy officials comment

Monti: New Italian government should stick to reform plan

Duplicity and the Yen

Germany: CPI rose 0.6% MoM in February

US: GDP expanded 0.1% YoY in Q4

Canada: Current Account deficit at $17.26 billion in Q4

Eurogroup chief: Maturity extensions for Ireland and Portugal bailouts being considered–Reuters

US: Chicago PMI improves unexpectedly to 56.8 in February

American equity markets barely changed after GDP data

Commodities Brief – Gold holds below 1600, silver below 29.00 after upbeat US data

Dijsselbloem suggests extending bailout maturities for Ireland and Portugal