Daily Currency Update
USD - United States DollarThe Greenback was falling around 0.3 percent so far from the close last Friday, but still, there are some hours to go before the end of this week. The U.S. dollar index, the most important representation of the Greenback, is falling despite a buoyant declaration from Fed chair, Jerome Powell, on the second day of Congressional testimony. Powell said the U.S. economy is a "star" performer, and officials expect "continued moderate growth”. He added that there are few warnings that the growth of financial markets will go off the rails; however, just like all the central bankers’ speeches around the world, he repeated general concerns about trade uncertainty. Powell was not alone in his speech; other Fed officials were on the same page in yesterday's declarations. For instance, New York President John Williams said growth and monetary policy are "in a good place." Vice-Chairman Richard Clarida called the economy, "…at or close to maximum employment and price stability." St. Louis' James Bullard said the yield curve suggests a bullish 2020 outlook and recommended the bank "wait and see" on the impact of recent easing.
Key Movers
The likelihood of the U.S. and China reaching a phase-one trade deal got a bit dicier than last week. There are some signs of complicating trade talks; for instance, the Senate is preparing for the accelerated passage of a law to support pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong by placing the city's special trading status under annual review. Of course, Beijing disagrees with the U.S. intervention. But at the same time, last night, White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow said that phase-one trade talks between the U.S. and China are in final stages with both sides, "…in close contact." Nobody knows what will be the outcome, but we are probably going to have first-hand information if we follow some Twitter accounts. RBNZ's Orr said on Bloomberg TV that the door is open for a rate cut if needed, but that the central bank is in a position to observe data, and there are some signs of a pick-up in activity. The Kiwi dollar is bouncing against the Canadian and the U.S. dollar, 0.19 and 0.27 percent, respectively, at the time of this writing. In Australia, despite the last miss in employment numbers, Australia's economy appears to show little direct effects from the U.S. China trade and technology dispute. The country's trade surplus is at a record high, and export volumes to China are at record highs. The AUD/USD pair trades 0.29 percent higher at 0.6806 this morning.
Expected Ranges
- USD/CAD: 1.3220 - 1.3265 ▼
- EUR/USD: 1.1032 - 1.1062 ▲
- GBP/USD: 1.2842 - 1.2924 ▲
- AUD/USD: 0.6792 - 0.6824 ▲
- NZD/USD: 0.6380 - 0.6437 ▲