Michigan Consumer Sentiment comes in at 55.2 against 54.4 consensus

The University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment index for July 2026 was released today at 14:00 UTC, printing at 55.2. This figure exceeded the market consensus forecast of 54.4 by 1.5%. The previous month’s reading was also 54.4.

Following the release, market reactions were observed across major currency pairs and gold. Fifteen minutes after the data, AUDUSD was down 7.5 pips, while EURUSD was up 6.1 pips. GBPUSD gained 6.2 pips, and NZDUSD was down 0.9 pips. USDCAD moved up 13 pips. USDCHF was down 5.7 pips, and USDJPY was down 15 pips. Gold, XAUUSD, traded up 38 pips. For context, the median 1-hour move for AUDUSD after past releases is 8 pips, for EURUSD it is 12 pips, for GBPUSD it is 16 pips, and for NZDUSD it is 7 pips. USDCAD typically sees a median 1-hour move of 13 pips, USDCHF 9 pips, USDJPY 12 pips, and XAUUSD 30 pips. Some pairs, such as NZDUSD, saw moves smaller than their historical median 1-hour reactions, while others like USDJPY and XAUUSD saw moves exceeding their median 1-hour reactions within the first 15 minutes.