Market Recap
XAUUSD
XAUUSD finished the 20 Mar session at 4498.02, a decline of 158.44 points or 3.403% from the open, after a 258.4-point intraday span equal to 5.55% of the opening level. Price set the high first at 4735.74 at 06:27 and the low later at 4477.34 at 21:57, leaving the close near the bottom of the day’s range and below the session midpoint at 4606.54. The session opened at 4656.46 at 01:00, advanced through the 4700 handle before peaking at 06:27, then rotated lower for the remainder of the day, trading beneath 4600 and slipping under 4500 ahead of the late-session trough. By the close, the sequence of extremes was confirmed as high before low, and the settlement just under 4500 underscored the lower-end finish within the day’s distribution. On the higher timeframes, the entire session unfolded below the D1 21‑EMA at 4972.95, and price action extended to fresh 5‑day and 10‑day lows, as flagged by both the intraday print and the session’s status. The move occurred well below the 10‑day high at 5238.53 and maintained a wide distance from the daily moving average context. The test and brief break above 4700 early in the session contrasted with the later trade under 4500 into the close, framing a session that covered substantial ground from early strength to a late-day low. No tick‑volume or ATR reference was provided.
USDJPY
USDJPY finished the 20 Mar session at 159.21, up 1.50 (+0.95%) from the 157.72 open, after traversing a 1.79 range (1.13% of the open). Price set the session low at 157.59 at 00:21, just 0.12 below the open, and later posted the high at 159.38 at 21:57, establishing a low-before-high profile. The close was positioned near the top of the day’s span, sitting at 90.6% of the range and less than 0.20 from the late high by the 23:56 finish. Round numbers were in play: the pair traded through 158.00 in the hours after the early dip and later crossed the 159.00 figure, while 160.00 was not approached. From open to close, the advance of 1.50 represented about 84% of the total intraday span, with no retest of the opening level after the initial downswing. On the H4 chart, the 50-period simple moving average was at 158.97, and on the H1 chart the 20-period simple moving average stood at 158.76; the session ended above both references, with the close also above the midpoint of the day’s range. The high arrived within two hours of the session end, and the final print remained near that peak. No daily ATR or momentum indicators were provided, and no multi-day extremes were flagged by the dataset, leaving the focus on the session’s upward progression within a contained 1.79 range and a close concentrated at the upper end of the day’s distribution.
Economic Calendar Recap & Preview
Euro area producer prices fell 0.5 percent month over month, improving from a 0.6 percent decline previously but undershooting the consensus for a flat 0.0 percent print, signaling continued pipeline disinflation. Looking ahead, the calendar is sparse, with attention centered on Fed Chair Powell’s speech at 20:30 server time on 2026-03-21. Markets will parse his remarks for any guidance on the policy path and the inflation-growth balance; if commentary suggests price pressures are proving stickier than anticipated, expectations for a longer period of restrictive policy may firm. No other major data releases are scheduled in the window, but several outlets may carry headlines around the appearance, and any remarks on balance sheet policy, labor market cooling, or the reaction function could influence front-end rates and the dollar. A brief bout of volatility around the start time is possible as headlines hit before full transcripts circulate.