Earlier in the day, US retail sales crashed 8.7% month-on-month in March (against expectations of an 8.0% drop). Year-over-year, headline retail sales plunged 6.2% - the most significant decline since Sept 2009.
The Control Group (that is used for GDP calculation purposes), somehow managed a 1.7% MoM rise (against expectations of 2.0% drop). The driver appears to be 'hoarding' as food and beverage, and health stores saw huge increases in sales.
As the dollar gained, commodities fell. Silver was down 1.5%, gold lost 0.5%, and oil traded 4% lower, with the WTI benchmark trying to hold above the 20 USD threshold.
The US indices were set to open 2% lower today, correcting substantial gains from this week's rally. Sentiment remains positive, but we will see how the situation develops as the underlying fundamentals are very bearish.