Are we back to normal? – North American session Market wrap for January 22

[Ben Graham]

Log in to today's North American session Market wrap for January 22

Current Market flows are very tough to predict and erratic as fundamentals keep changing and geopolitical volatility is at its peak.

The Greenland situation has largely abated but questions remain, Stock markets are trading as if nothing ever happened around the globe and Commodities are sharing their most helter-skelter sessions – Metals are trading to new highs once again while Energy products got slammed after this morning's EIA Report.

A quick bubble pop actually took Natural Gas prices from $5.69 highs this morning to the current $5.10 close (on its CFD), a quick 9% drop.

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Natural Gas (ETF) 15M Chart – January 22, 2026 – Source: TradingView

Discover: Natural gas explodes by 70% in four sessions: What's next?

Oil also took a beating from much higher-than-expected inventories and somewhat calming fundamentals – the rhetoric regarding Iran is still quite passive-aggressive.

However, it is tough to predict whether anything will happen, as the Trump Admin still seems to be weighing the risks and rewards of an intervention.

Access to Internet was brought back but is severely controlled, while the Iranian population still suffers.

A wise trader once told me that when things go all around, and flows get chaotic, focus on whatever makes the most sense.

In this direction, it seems that the traders gravitated towards the Australian Dollar.

After yesterday's Labor data, the Aussie started a relentless run higher, further boosted by weakness in the US Dollar.

As the January 28 FOMC meeting isn't expected to provide much change in interest rates, Currency traders will question a potential RBA Hike, with any such move swiftly priced in – the rate decision is on February 3.

Discover:

• AUD/USD explodes above August 2024 highs – Australian Dollar Outlook
• Greenland tensions ease, but forecasts for Gold are still very optimistic
• US GDP beats and Monday gaps fill – Dow Jones and US Stock Index Outlook

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Market Close Heatmap – Source: TradingView – January 22, 2026

Stocks printed some decent charts in the past few sessions as Trade-related tensions have abated – Still, bulls will have to actually push above Indexes' all-time highs to regain a fully bullish path.

The answer to ongoing Market confusion could be found on next Wednesday, after the FOMC session and high-importance Mag 7 Earnings!

Cross-Assets Daily Performance

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Cross-Asset Daily Performance, January 22, 2026 – Source: TradingView

It's tough to reason with today's Market movement, but it's at least good that there is some up-and-down volatility which allows quick entries and profit-taking for Traders.

The geopolitical picture is still very confusing so it seems that traders are already backing away from the uncertainty, profit-taking on short-term movements.

Keep an eye on Metals which are breaking out further and watch for weekend risk volatile action.

A picture of today's performance for major currencies

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Currency Performance, January 22, 2026 – Source: OANDA Labs

Today's session was largely marked by the continued upside in Antipodean currencies – the Aussie is leading FX Currencies as it breaks yearly highs against the US Dollar, once again tied loser with the Japanese Yen.

Yen sellers could see a quick test of strength in this evening and tomorrow's action, as the world will keep their eyes wide open for the Bank of Japan's Rate Decision tonight.

This one could be Market breaking – A hike is almost a certainty, but the question on Japan's Fiscal Policy craziness remains, let's see what the BOJ says.

Major Earnings in Tomorrow's session

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Earnings Calendar – January 22, 2026 – Source: Nasdaq.com

Tomorrow's earning session should be calmer, but expect more volatile earnings next week.

A look at Economic data releasing throughout this Weekend and Monday's sessions

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For all market-moving economic releases and events, see the MarketPulse Economic Calendar.

Thursday’s session is front-loaded with Asia-Pacific inflation and activity data.

New Zealand CPI gets released in a few minutes, followed by Australia’s flash PMIs, setting the tone for regional growth expectations.

Attention then turns squarely to Japan in the evening, with national CPI prints ahead of the BoJ rate decision, policy statement and outlook report — a key risk event not only for the JPY but for the rest of the Market, heavily profiting from the current run on the Nippon currency.

Friday keeps momentum high across Europe and North America.

The UK releases December retail sales before a dense run of flash PMIs from the euro area and the UK, offering an early read on January activity.

ECB President Lagarde then takes the stage at the WEF, she has appeared a couple of times already so it'll be interesting to see what more she has to offer.

North America wraps up the week with Canadian retail sales (8:30 A.M) and US PMIs (9:45 A.M), before the Michigan sentiment and inflation expectations data conclude a high paced week at 10:00 A.M. With growth, inflation and central bank signals all in play, volatility could stay elevated into the weekly close.

Safe Trades, keep a close eye on Middle East and Greenland developments!

Follow Elior on Twitter/X for Additional Market News, interactions and Insights @EliorManier

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