The U.S. Dollar is trading in mostly familiar ranges as markets take in the fact that expected data points for the week will not be released because of the partial government shutdown.
Indeed, a spending deal is holding back certain sectors of the government from working. News regarding this may change at any moment, but thus far equity markets are optimistic, and futures are up based on some good earnings reports from big tech firms that remain the carrying force across stock exchanges.
On the geopolitical front, a few developments are of note with oil prices sliding after reports that the U.S. and Iran were willing to deescalate tensions. Furthermore, in the spirit of cooperation, it was announced India would agree to a trade pact with the U.S. that would effectively reduce tariff obligations from 50.0% to just 18.0% after resolving issues over sanctioned Russian-oil purchases. Since no JOLTS or Non-Farm Payrolls will be out, the Buck’s fate will depend on other headlines.
What to Watch This Week…
- Euro-zone CPI, Wednesday
- US Nonfarm Payrolls, Friday 8:30AM
- Monex USA Online is always open
EUR ⇑
The Euro has not moved a ton, but it remains hovering around multi-year high levels ahead of the European Central Bank meeting and press conference on Thursday. Following the decision by the Bank of Australia to hike after holding back from doing so and providing expansionary measures, central bankers across the G-10 countries are growing more worried about price growth. If the Fed ends up more “dovish-sounding” than the rest of financial authorities, the central-bank-policy divergence may bode poorly for Dollar strength. The Buck is down 1.0% thus far into the fresh year, per the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index.
