New Step

29/10/2021

19/05/2021

Bitcoin, the world's biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, fell about 9% to as low as $38,940.04, even slipping below a key 200-day moving average. It is now down 40% from the year's high of $64,895.22 on April 14.

Ether, the coin linked to the ethereum blockchain network, dropped about 15% to $2,875.36.

The declines in the two most traded cryptocurrencies were sparked last week by Musk's reversal on Tesla taking bitcoin as payment, followed by other tweets that caused confusion over whether the carmaker had shed its holdings of the currency.

China's announcement on Tuesday that it is banning financial institutions and payment companies from providing services related to cryptocurrency transactions, coupled with a warning to investors against speculative crypto trading, seemed to have exacerbated the selling.

19/05/2021

The pound soared to a three-month high against the dollar, riding on the coattails of reopening optimism, but the end of pandemic will bring the focus back on the Brexit effects that could halt cable’s run higher, according to an FX expert.

GBP/USD rose 0.39% to $1.4188.

“Corona euphoria is continuing, but we remain Sterling sceptical,” Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) FX, EM Analysts You-Na Park-Heger said in a note. But with the end of the pandemic, market attention “will increasingly focus on the (negative) Brexit effects again, […] we see little scope for further Sterling appreciation,” Heger added.

19/05/2021

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar dipped on Tuesday for the fourth straight session, reaching its lowest level against a basket of currencies since late February on waning fears that inflation spikes could prompt the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates sooner than anticipated.

U.S. Treasury yields stalled as investors grew more confident that the Fed will hold off on tightening its accommodative monetary policy, despite worrisome indicators that booming demand and scarce supply are sending prices soaring.

Those price increases have stoked fears of longer-term inflation, despite the central bank's assurances that the spikes will be transitory.

12/05/2021

NEW YORK (Reuters) -The U.S. dollar hit a 2-1/2-month low early in the New York session, then stabilized around those levels on Tuesday afternoon, the eve of U.S. consumer price data, as investors bet that rising inflation could erode the currency's value.

In recent years, rising inflation expectations have helped the dollar because investors assumed the Federal Reserve would hike interest rates in response to higher prices. That is no longer the case.

A disappointing employment report last week triggered a widespread selloff in the greenback. And though surging commodity prices have raised concerns of higher inflation, markets believe the Fed will keep its commitment to low rates and hefty asset purchases.

"People are fearful that the Fed means what they say. And what they're saying is - we're not going to raise rates, but also we're going to let inflation run," said Andy Brenner, head of international fixed income at NatAlliance Securities.

Against a basket of its major rivals, the dollar dropped as low as 89.979, its lowest since Feb. 25, and was last down 0.11% at 90.138.

"Even if we see a print above expectations tomorrow, the likelihood of a robust dollar rally is very much lessened by the fact that far fewer market participants expect the Fed to react to that number in any way," said Karl Schamotta, chief market strategist at Cambridge Global Payments (NYSE:GPN).

12/05/2021

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar hovered near a 2-1/2-month low versus major peers on Wednesday, as traders hung on to bets that the Federal Reserve would remain steadfast in its easy policy settings ahead of data expected to show a sharp rise in annual U.S. inflation.

Analysts forecast figures due at 1230 GMT to show a 3.6% lift in year-on-year prices, boosted by last April's low base. The month-on-month forecast is for a modest 0.2% rise.

Higher numbers might add pressure on the Fed to bring forward rate rises, a worry which has contributed to a selloff in rate-sensitive tech shares this week. But currency markets have been soothed by repeated promises of patience from Fed speakers and the dollar has been pressured by gains in commodity currencies.

10/05/2021

The currency rose as much as 0.2% to 6.4403 a dollar, the strongest since June 2018, after breaching its previous year-to-date high of 6.4245 touched in January. The move came after the greenback slid on weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs data on Friday.

China’s currency began a rebound in April, along with other emerging market peers, as Treasury yields decline. The yuan is the second-best performing currency in Asia this year as its economy rebounded quicker than others from the pandemic and the nation’s monetary policy starts to show signs of normalization.

10/05/2021

The dollar edged lower in early European trade Friday, under modest pressure ahead of the monthly U.S. employment report which is expected to firm up expectations of a strong economic recovery.

At 2:55 AM ET (0755 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, was down 0.1% at 90.905, near its lowest level this week.

EUR/USD traded largely flat at 1.2060, having gained 0.5% Thursday, USD/JPY rose 0.1% to 109.16, the risk-sensitive AUD/USD fell 0.2% to 0.7766, while USD/CAD rose 0.2% to 1.2176, having fallen to a 3-1/2-year low of 1.2145 overnight, helped by the Bank of Canada's recent tapering of its asset purchases and its shift to more hawkish guidance.

The greenback has traded in narrow ranges Friday, with traders focusing on the release of U.S. payrolls data, at 1230 GMT, which are expected to confirm the U.S. labor market is on a solid path towards recovery from the pandemic.

10/05/2021

NEW YORK (Reuters) -The dollar fell to its lowest in more than two months on Friday after U.S. jobs data for April came in well below expectations, putting a damper on hopes that a roaring economic recovery would spur higher rates and light a fire under the greenback.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by only 266,000 jobs last month after rising by 770,000 in March, the Labor Department said in its closely watched employment report. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a rise of 978,000 jobs.

"The number was so out of consensus, that I think the market expectation of super-high rates and a squeeze on inflation is going to go down by the wayside, and that obviously means more liquidity from the Fed," said Boris Schlossberg, managing director of FX strategy at BK Asset Management.

07/05/2021

The dollar edged lower in early European trade Friday, under modest pressure ahead of the monthly U.S. employment report which is expected to firm up expectations of a strong economic recovery.

At 2:55 AM ET (0755 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, was down 0.1% at 90.905, near its lowest level this week.

EUR/USD traded largely flat at 1.2060, having gained 0.5% Thursday, USD/JPY rose 0.1% to 109.16, the risk-sensitive AUD/USD fell 0.2% to 0.7766, while USD/CAD rose 0.2% to 1.2176, having fallen to a 3-1/2-year low of 1.2145 overnight, helped by the Bank of Canada's recent tapering of its asset purchases and its shift to more hawkish guidance.

07/05/2021

The U.S. Dollar Index that tracks the greenback against a basket of other currencies inched down 0.09% to 90.858 by 12:40 PM ET (4:40 AM GMT).

The USD/JPY pair inched down 0.01% to 109.06, with Japan’s April’s services Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) coming in at a better-than-expected 49.5.