Today's simultaneous release of the Fed's preferred inflation indicator with the November jobs figures is a fresh reminder of the dual forward guidance at the Fed's disposal used at tempering enthusiasm of an imminent reduction in asset purchases. Here is my take on why EURUSD has shrugged today's US jobs. Full Chart & Analysis

Watch Ashraf's interview with Reuters Insider, giving his expectations for NFP parameters, EURUSD, GBPUSd and bond yields Full Video

Fed members endorsed a roadmap to tapering in comments Thursday, something that could lay the groundwork for a US dollar rally. The yen outperformed for the third consecutive day while the pound lagged. The calendar is light as the Asian week winds down.

Ashraf wrote about the strong euro reaction, jumping to 1.3677 from 1.3543, and how it was all about what the ECB didn't say – namely the lack of dovish rhetoric. The other surprise is that an LTRO may be less likely than many analysts believed. Technically, the EUR/USD move is a breakout to the highest since Oct 31.

Initial jobless claims were strong at 298K compared to 320K expected. It was the lowest in two months but Thanksgiving may have skewed the numbers. Other data also pointed to a taper with Q3 GDP revisions pushing the estimate to 3.6% from 2.8% -- much higher than 3.1% expected. Core durable goods orders were also revised to -0.6% from -1.2%.

Data that points to a taper is generally good news for the dollar but that wasn't the case in US trading as the buck was battered on every front. USD/JPY slipped to 101.70 and other dollar declines were steeper.

One factor that could restore the dollar rally is a Fed effort to spell out how the Fed will complete the taper when the first move is made. The market expected a meeting-to-meeting approach but a roadmap, even if tentative, adds considerable certainty and is a hawkish move.  Atlanta Fed President Lockhart called for setting a timetable on QE tapering, adding his name to a list that includes Plosser, Williams and Fisher.

There are no major economic data releases in Asia and pre-NFP will also cap price action.

Markets have reacted to NOT what the ECB said, but instead to what the ECB did NOT say.  My analysis on the euro's jump to 1.3650s, the UK autumn statement and the US GDP. Full charts & analysis here

A series of major data points left no clear signal on the direction of the US economy or the Fed but created plenty of volatility. The yen was the top performer while the Australian dollar lagged. Australian trade balance is on the agenda after AUD/USD breached 0.9000.

Traders hoping for a clear signal on the taper or no-taper debate didn't get it Wednesday. ADP employment rose to the highest of the year at 215K compared 173K and October data was also revised higher.The dollar kicked higher on the release but was reluctant to move ahead of the ISM non-manufacturing report and after the data was released it became clear why. The index fell to 53.9 from 55.0 and the employment component fell to the lowest since May.

USD embarked on an extended decline after the data but it stalled late in the day. The Beige Book anecdotal Fed report didn't show any fresh enthusiasm for the economy, saying that hiring increased modestly or was unchanged.

It's premature to draw conclusions ahead of Friday's NFP report but a December taper is likely to lose support among traders. One reason why is inflation. The Bank of Canada is dealing with the same stubbornly low inflation as the Fed and acknowledged growing disinflation risk in the BOC statement. That helped send USD/CAD above 1.07 to a three-year high.

The strangest signals of all came from gold. It rose as high as $1252 from $1211 and began climbing on the ADP number – something that should have hurt gold. There was talk of a single, large buyer and the move stalled out ahead of technical resistance at $1258.

The Australian dollar was also sold relentlessly, despite Aussie 10-year yields at the highest since 2011. A slightly soft GDP report was not enough to justify the nearly 1.5 cent drop in AUD/USD to 0.8999. Instead, it could be signaling capitulation from the bulls.

Data is light in Asia today ahead of the ECB and BOE decisions later. One event to watch is Australian trade balance for Oct at 0030 GMT.