London Open Briefing: Friday, August 21, 2026

The London session opens with a generally positive tone following gains in Asian markets. The JP225 advanced 1.04%, alongside a 0.89% rise in XAUUSD. Broader sentiment is reflected in the USTEC gaining 0.40% and the UK100 up 0.27%. In the currency space, AUDUSD saw a 0.44% increase and NZDUSD rose 0.38%, contributing to AUD being the strongest currency over 24 hours with a +0.27% gain, followed by NZD at +0.21%. The risk meter stands at +0.02, indicating a slight risk-on sentiment as traders begin the European day.

Early European data from France showed mixed results. The S&P Global Composite PMI came in at 48.8, below the 49.6 consensus, while the Services PMI was 48.4, missing the 49.6 consensus. However, the Manufacturing PMI surprised positively at 51.5 against a 50.1 consensus, and Business Climate was 103 versus 102. Elsewhere, Sweden’s Unemployment Rate was 7.8%, better than the 8.6% consensus, and New Zealand’s RBNZ Credit Card Spending y/y rose 5.3%, significantly above the 0.7% consensus.

Looking ahead, the focus for the European session will be on a series of PMI releases. At 08:00 UTC, the Eurozone will release its S&P Global Services PMI, Composite PMI, and Manufacturing PMI. Shortly after at 08:30 UTC, the UK will publish its S&P Global/CIPS Composite PMI, Flash Services PMI, Flash Manufacturing PMI, S&P Global/CIPS Services PMI, and S&P Global/CIPS Manufacturing PMI. Retail positioning data shows a crowd shift on GBPUSD with the book moving 8 points toward short in 24 hours, while retail books disagree by 30 points on NZDUSD.

Traders will closely monitor the upcoming S&P Global/CIPS Manufacturing PMI from the UK.

Scheduled this session (High and Medium impact)

Times are UTC. This brief describes measured market state and the published schedule. It is not financial advice and nothing in it is a trade recommendation.