Foreign exchange market. European session: the British pound traded higher against the U.S. dollar after the release of U.K. retail sales data

Economic calendar (GMT0):

(Time/ Region/ Event/ Period/ Previous/ Forecast/ Actual)

00:30 Australia NAB Quarterly Business Confidence Quarter III 4 0

08:30 United Kingdom Retail Sales (MoM) September -0.4% Revised From 0.2% 0.3% 1.9%

08:30 United Kingdom Retail Sales (YoY) September 3.5% Revised From 3.7% 4.8% 6.5%

11:45 Eurozone ECB Interest Rate Decision 0.05% 0.05%

The U.S. dollar traded mixed against the most major currencies ahead of the release of the U.S. economic data. The existing home sales in the U.S. are expected to decrease to 5.38 million units in September from 5.31 million units in August.

The U.S. leading economic index is expected to be flat in September, after a 0.1% increase in August.

The number of initial jobless claims in the U.S. is expected to rise by 10,000 265,000 last week.

The euro traded lower against the U.S. dollar after the European Central Bank's (ECB) interest rate decision. The central bank kept its interest rate unchanged at 0.05%.

The ECB's press conference is scheduled to be at 12:30 GMT.

Meanwhile, the economic data from the Eurozone was mixed. The French statistical office Insee released its manufacturing confidence index for France on Thursday. The French manufacturing confidence index decreased to 103 in October from 104 in September. September's reading was the highest level since August 2011.

The Spanish statistical office INE released its labour market figures on Thursday. The number of registered unemployed people fell by 298,200 in the third quarter to 4.85 million.

The unemployment rate was 21.2% in the third quarter, down from 22.4% in the second quarter. It was the lowest level in four years.

The British pound traded higher against the U.S. dollar after the release of U.K. retail sales data. The Office for National Statistics released its retail sales data for the U.K. on Thursday. Retail sales in the U.K. increased 1.9% in September, exceeding expectations for a 0.3% gain, after a 0.4% decline in August. August's figure was revised down from a 0.2% increase.

The Rugby World Cup in England and Wales supported the retail sales in September.

Food prices climbed 2.3% in September. It was the highest gain since April 2014.

On a yearly basis, retail sales in the U.K. climbed 6.5% in September, beating forecasts of 4.8% increase, after a 3.5% rise in August. August's figure was revised down from a 3.7% gain.

The Canadian dollar traded mixed against the U.S. dollar ahead the release of the Canadian retail sales data. Canadian retail sales are expected to increase 0.1% in August, after a 0.5% rise in July.

EUR/USD: the currency pair declined to $1.1301

GBP/USD: the currency pair rose to $1.5507

USD/JPY: the currency pair increased to Y119.81

The most important news that are expected (GMT0):

12:30 Eurozone ECB Press Conference

12:30 Canada Retail Sales, m/m August 0.5% 0.1%

12:30 Canada Retail Sales YoY August 1.8%

12:30 Canada Retail Sales ex Autos, m/m August 0% 0.1%

12:30 U.S. Chicago Federal National Activity Index September -0.41

12:30 U.S. Initial Jobless Claims October 255 265

14:00 Eurozone Consumer Confidence (Preliminary) October -7.1 -7.35

14:00 U.S. Leading Indicators September 0.1% 0.0%

14:00 U.S. Existing Home Sales September 5.31 5.38