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Forex

Dollar slips as US job growth slows in June, yen jumps

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Dollar slips as US job growth slows in June, yen jumps
© Reuters. A U.S. one dollar banknote is seen in front of displayed stock graph in this illustration taken May 7, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

By Herbert Lash and Amanda Cooper

NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) -The dollar slumped on Friday after signs of a less resilient U.S. labor market reduced the outlook for how long the Federal Reserves will keep interest rates higher, while the yen surged on concerns the 10-year Treasury’s yield rose above 4%.

The U.S. economy added the fewest jobs in 2-1/2 years in June, the Labor Department said in an employment report that also showed 110,000 fewer jobs were created in April and May than earlier reported.

A jump in the number of people working part-time for economic reasons also suggested a weaker labor market, but the pace of job growth remains strong and with inflation still double the Fed’s target rate, a rate hike this month is likely.

Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex in New York, said markets are looking at next week’s release of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which could show inflation slowing to 3.1%. That would reduce the likelihood of another rate hike by the Fed after one expected in late July.

“This is a inflection point,” he said. “The dollar’s rally in the second half of June was a counter-trend correction and the dollar’s underlying downtrend that began last September-October will resume.”

The yen rose 1.37% to 142.13, a two-week high against the U.S. currency, as the rise in 10-year Treasury’s yield above 4% heightened market concerns that Japan might intervene in currency markets, said Joe Manimbo, senior market analyst.

“Risk aversion being a dominant theme this week, coupled with dollar-yen hanging around these elevated levels, has the market nervous that Japan may be edging closer to jumping back in and intervening in support of the yen,” he said.

“We’re still in striking distance of 145, which appears to be the line in the sand, with Treasury yields – the 10-year in particular keeping above 4% – that’s a sign that any moves to the downside in dollar-yen may prove very limited.”

The fell 0.776% at 102.280, while the euro was up 0.72% to $1.0964.

The dollar and other major currencies, with the exception of Japan’s yen, are in a tight trading range as most central banks are engaged in tightening monetary policy to fight inflation. Strong U.S. economic data on Thursday pushed short-dated Treasury yields to their highest since 2007, reflecting the view that the Fed is likely to raise rates by 25 basis points when it concludes a two-day policy meeting on July 26.

After the jobs data, futures pointed to an 88.8% probability that the Fed hikes in three weeks.

Earlier, the Japanese labor ministry reported regular wages posted their largest annual increase in May since early 1995, reinforcing the view that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will have to modify its ultra-loose monetary policy sooner rather than later. “The stronger wage negotiations are starting to feed through, which is what the BOJ wants. They’ve said very clearly that if they see evidence of more sustained, stronger wage growth that could give them more confidence that they can beat their inflation target and then look obviously to moving away from loose policy settings,” MUFG strategist Lee Hardman said.

Adding a tailwind to the rally in the yen was some position-squaring among speculators, who have built up sizeable bearish positions, Hardman said. YEN BEARS, BEWARE Weekly data from the U.S. regulator shows speculators hold a short position in the yen worth $9.793 billion, the largest since May 2022, having almost doubled in size in the last three months alone. The yen has held just below the 145 level – which prompted the BOJ’s first intervention in decades last autumn – for about two weeks and authorities have made clear they are concerned about the weakness in the currency. The Australian dollar rose 0.8% to $0.6681, but it is still battered by weak Chinese economic data and broad risk aversion. The fell 0.4% at 7.2257.

Currency bid prices at 3:46 p.m. (1946 GMT)

Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid

Previous Change

Session

Dollar index 102.2800 103.0900 -0.78% -1.169% +103.1900 +102.2200

Euro/Dollar $1.0966 $1.0892 +0.67% +2.34% +$1.0973 +$1.0867

Dollar/Yen 142.1200 144.0600 -1.34% +8.40% +144.1900 +142.0850

Euro/Yen 155.85 156.87 -0.65% +11.08% +156.9300 +155.3900

Dollar/Swiss 0.8889 0.8954 -0.72% -3.86% +0.8969 +0.8879

Sterling/Dollar $1.2833 $1.2740 +0.74% +6.12% +$1.2849 +$1.2727

Dollar/Canadian 1.3277 1.3369 -0.72% -2.04% +1.3386 +1.3266

Aussie/Dollar $0.6688 $0.6626 +0.95% -1.88% +$0.6701 +$0.6620

Euro/Swiss 0.9747 0.9749 -0.02% -1.50% +0.9760 +0.9737

Euro/Sterling 0.8542 0.8547 -0.06% -3.41% +0.8554 +0.8526

NZ Dollar/Dollar $0.6208 $0.6158 +0.87% -2.18% +$0.6219 +$0.6156

Dollar/Norway 10.6160 10.7690 -1.46% +8.13% +10.7750 +10.6110

Euro/Norway 11.6465 11.7212 -0.64% +10.99% +11.7360 +11.6210

Dollar/Sweden 10.8345 10.9232 -0.21% +4.10% +10.9653 +10.8260

Euro/Sweden 11.8812 11.9058 -0.21% +6.56% +11.9508 +11.8655

Forex

Dollar on track for weekly gain after Trump election win

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By Karen Brettell and Stefano Rebaudo

(Reuters) -The dollar rose on Friday and was heading for a weekly gain as investors evaluated the likely impact on the American economy of Tuesday’s election of Republican Donald Trump as U.S. president.

Analysts expect Trump’s policy proposals — including more trade tariffs, a clampdown on illegal immigration, lower taxes and business deregulation — will boost growth and inflation.

But in the near term there remains considerable uncertainty over what policies will actually be introduced.

“We don’t really know how much was campaign rhetoric, how much is a negotiating position, how much of it is speaking principle,” said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex in New York. “Part of the volatility we’re seeing in the dollar and in interest rates is that the market is trying to figure it out.”

Republicans also won control of the Senate and are leading the race for the House of Representatives, with some races still to be called.

The jumped to a four-month high of 105.44 on Wednesday, but has dipped since, partly due to profit-taking. It was up 0.58% on the day at 105.01 on Friday and on pace for a 0.68% weekly increase.

Data on Friday showed that U.S. consumer sentiment rose to a seven-month high in early November, in a survey taken before the election.

The next major U.S. economic release will be Wednesday’s consumer price data for October.

“We need more clarity about U.S. policies,” said Athanasios Vamvakidis, global head of forex strategy at Bank of America. “Until then, the greenback will be trading (on) data and expectations for the Fed easing path.”

On Thursday, the Federal Reserve cut rates by 25 basis points, which had been widely expected. Chair Jerome Powell said the U.S. central bank would not speculate on the impact of any policies by the incoming U.S. government.

Traders are pricing in 65% odds that the Fed will cut again by 25 basis points in December, down from 83% a week ago, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool.

The euro dropped 0.85% to $1.0712 and was headed for a 1.12% decline for the week, which saw the collapse of Germany’s coalition government on Wednesday.

Against the Japanese currency, the greenback fell 0.13% to 152.73 yen.

The yen is expected to suffer as the interest rate differential with the United States widens, which could prompt Japan’s central bank to raise rates as soon as December to prevent the currency from sliding back toward three-decade lows.

weakened after Beijing unveiled a 10 trillion yuan ($1.4 trillion) debt package on Friday to ease local government financing strains and stabilize flagging economic growth.

“Markets may have been hoping for a larger-than-expected stimulus,” said Lynn Song, chief economist for Greater China at ING.

The was last down 0.69% at 7.2 per dollar.

The Australian dollar, often used as a liquid proxy for its Chinese counterpart, fell 1.53% to $0.6576.

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: U.S. Dollar banknote is seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

was last up 1.45% at $77,068, after earlier reaching a record $77,303.97.

Trump is expected to enact a more favorable regulatory environment for the crypto industry.

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Dollar set for small weekly gains after Fed rate cut

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Investing.com – The U.S. dollar steadied Friday, set to end a volatile week with small gains as traders digested the implications of a new Trump presidency as well as benign Federal Reserve.

At 04:30 ET (09:30 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, traded flat at 104.372.

The index is on track for a gain of just 0.2% this week, even after gaining 1.5% on Wednesday in the wake of Donald Trump’s election victory, when it recorded its biggest single-day gain since September 2022.

Dollar unwinds Trump gains

The dollar surged to a four-month high on Wednesday as traders positioned for a new Trump administration, with its tariff and immigration policies likely to prompt the Federal Reserve to reduce rates at a slower and shallower pace.

However, some of these gains have been unwound after the cut interest rates by 25 basis points on Thursday, and signaled the likelihood of further rate cuts ahead as inflation appeared on course to fall to the central bank’s 2% target.

“A large portion of the election move in the dollar has been unwound. That, to us, looks more like a positioning adjustment rather than a rethink of what a Trump presidency means for global markets,” said analysts at ING, in a note. 

“Remember that markets got to Election Day broadly pricing in a Trump victory, and while the dollar spiked in reaction to the Republican clean sweep, there are perhaps some questions now on how far the dollar can rally near term given the focus is shifting back to the macroeconomic discussion.”

The US consumer price index for October is due next week, and this could influence market sentiment as the year comes to a close. 

Euro weighed by German political crisis

In Europe, dropped 0.2% to 1.0785, with the common currency on course for a weekly loss of around 0.5%, weighed by a political crisis in Germany, the eurozone’s biggest economy.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday sacked his finance minister, paving the way for a snap election after months of disagreements in his three-party coalition.

This political turmoil comes at a critical juncture for Europe’s biggest economy, with Trump’s election victory raising the possibility of a trade war with the region’s main trading partner. 

“EUR/USD traded briefly above 1.080 yesterday on the back of the broad-based unwinding of post-election USD longs,” ING said. “This appears to be a positioning unwinding, and we doubt markets are reconsidering the negative implications of Trump’s expected policies on the eurozone.”

fell 0.2% to 1.2961, with sterling falling further from the psychologically important 1.30 level in the wake of the Bank of England’s latest interest rate cut.

The delivered its second rate cut since 2020 on Thursday, dropping by 25 basis points to 4.75% from 5%, but also indicated that the latest UK Budget could cause inflation to take a year longer to return sustainably to its 2% target.

“A December rate cut is looking rather unlikely following the budget, and markets are also pricing in a very small implied probability,” ING said. “At the same time, we don’t think the budget will significantly derail the BoE’s easing path next year, and we still expect faster cuts in the spring compared to market expectations.”

Yuan looks to NPC meeting

climbed 0.2% to 7.1555, with the yuan weakening slightly with the focus squarely on the NPC meeting, which concludes on Friday, for more cues on Beijing’s plans to roll out fiscal stimulus. 

Analysts expect the government to approve at least 10 trillion yuan ($1.6 trillion) in fresh spending for the coming years. The NPC meeting comes after Beijing announced a slew of stimulus measures over the past month, but did not specify their timing or scale.

fell 0.4% to 152.39, with the yen gaining after Japanese ministers issued fresh verbal warnings over potential intervention in the currency market.

fell 0.5% to 0.6646, but was headed for an over 1% weekly gain.

 

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Asia FX steadies as dollar slides after Fed cuts interest rates

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Investing.com– Most Asian currencies steadied on Friday after clocking sharp gains in the prior session, while the dollar nursed some losses after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates as widely expected.

Regional currencies recouped a bulk of their weekly losses after the Fed’s move, with some even turning positive for the week. The dollar, on the other hand, tumbled from four-month highs, with some traders also locking in recent gains. 

Focus was also on more cues on fiscal stimulus from China, as a meeting of the country’s Nation People’s Congress entered its final day.

Dollar nurses tumble from 4-mth high after Fed rate cut 

The and both steadied in Asian trade, steadying from a sharp drop on Thursday after the Fed to a range of 4.50% to 4.75%. 

The greenback had shot up to a four-month high earlier in the week after Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election, with Trump’s policies potentially heralding stickier inflation in the long term.

The Fed said a change in U.S. leadership was unlikely to affect monetary policy in the near-term. Chair Jerome Powell signaled that the economy was in a good place, and that the bank was likely to ease policy further in the coming months.

Traders were seen pricing in a 76.5% chance the Fed will cut rates by 25 bps in December, and a 23.5% chance rates will remain unchanged, showed.

Chinese yuan fragile with NPC in focus 

The Chinese yuan- which was among the worst hit by dollar strength this week- weakened slightly on Friday, with the pair rising 0.2%. The pair was also set to rise 0.4% this week.

Focus was squarely on the NPC meeting, which concludes on Friday, for more cues on Beijing’s plans to roll out fiscal stimulus. 

Analysts expect the government to approve at least 10 trillion yuan ($1.6 trillion) in fresh spending for the coming years. The NPC meeting comes after Beijing announced a slew of stimulus measures over the past month, but did not specify their timing or scale.

Broader Asian currencies mostly weakened on Friday, but were sitting on strong gains from the prior session following the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut.

The Japanese yen was an outlier, with the pair falling 0.2% and further away from three-month highs after Japanese ministers issued fresh verbal warnings over potential intervention in the currency market.

The Australian dollar’s pair fell 0.4%, but was headed for a nearly 2% weekly gain. The South Korean won’s pair rose 0.4%, while the Singapore dollar’s pair rose 0.1%.

The Indian rupee was a major laggard this week, with the pair surging to record highs above 84.4 rupees. The pair remained close to these highs on Friday. 

 

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