Lagging Indicators and the Illusion of Control

It's always a bit of a head-scratcher seeing the emphasis on the latest CPI or NFP prints as if they're the primary drivers for a market that often discounts information well in advance. We watch $USDCAD bounce around 1.402, $GOOG taking a dip to 346.12, and $MGC trading at 272.04, and then immediately try to tie it to the last bit of macroeconomic data released yesterday. Aren't we just reacting to ghosts of the past? Price action itself often seems to be telling a more immediate, forward-looking story than any lagging indicator can. While central bank policy is clearly influenced by these numbers, I'm finding it increasingly difficult to see them as anything more than confirmation biases for trends already in motion. What am I missing here?