EURUSD TECHS: Northbound

The Johnson Redbook retail sales index showed continued robust growth into the Memorial Day weekend, rising 6.1% Y/Y in the week ending May 24 (Saturday), up from 5.4% the prior week.

• For May so far, sales are up 5.8% Y/Y (vs retailers' targeted 5.4%, and the month-to-date growth of 5.6% as of the prior week).
• There was no mention of tariffs and little sign of consumer pessimism in the report: "Memorial Day promotions helped to drive demand for a wide variety of summer and picnic products and seasonal apparel, which were the main focus for most consumers. Seasonal merchandise sold well in regions experiencing warm temperatures. Department stores noted increased activity in items related to school graduation, including women's wear, men's wear, footwear, and women's accessories. Additionally, discounters reported strong business in the grocery division in anticipation of the long Memorial Day weekend."
• Redbook sales have risen 5+% in 3 consecutive months, so this would mark the 4th month in a row - while that hasn't directly translated into the "official" retail series, it it does accounts for 80% Census Bureau sales, suggesting the latter looks to remain relatively robust in May (that data is only out on June 17).

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed that Ukraine's lead ceasefire negotiator, Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, has held a call with Vladimir Medinsky - his counterpart in this month's Istanbul talks, per Reuters.

• The call, which appears to be the first unmediated contact between the two negotiating teams, comes amid a slight uptick in optimism that Moscow will engage more credibly with a ceasefire process in order to head off new US sanctions.
• While Republican defence hawks are piling pressure on the White House to endorse a punitive package of new Russia sanctions, US President Donald Trump has hinted that "direct talks" between Kyiv and Moscow could be enough to delay Congress from moving a bipartisan sanctions package.
• Wires carried a headline in the past few moments stating that US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the US is ready to do a "maximum pressure framework on Russia." In context, the comment falls short of confirming that Trump will endorse sanctions, rather noting that the sanctions are an option. See: US-RUSSIA: Graham Reiterates Senate Ready To Move On Punitive Russia Sanctions
• Sceptics are likely to downplay the prospect of a breakthrough in the short term. Zelenskyy told reporters on Tuesday that Russia is amassing troops on the Kursk front, suggesting Russia is preparing for a summer offensive in Ukraine’s Sumy region.
• Zelenskyy is also taking steps to secure new military funding. He announced at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz today that Berlin has agreed to supply additional military hardware and increase funding to support Kyiv's domestic production of weapons. The Kremlin noted on the German announcement: “This is nothing but a further provocation of the war”.

FVN5 107.00 puts paper paid 0-08 on ~7K, takes the volume up to ~15K after the previously covered buying at 0-07+.