The U.S. Dollar is trading in mostly quiet ranges with some petro-currencies and the Japanese Yen—the only pairs to really change much during a holiday weekend that still sees most of the globe shut down in observance
Overview
Additionally, the coronavirus and measures to keep the public safe remain a part of daily life, thus slowing down any plans and negating activity. While there is some sing of relief in the number of infections across Europe, many U.S. businesses estimate that work-from-home for office professionals and shop shutdowns could still be in place for six weeks until some normalcy can be restored. The belief is that slowly, but surely some parts of the economy can open up and distancing measures eased, but not until way into May.
Oil prices saw a jump as a historic agreement was finally signed by the world’s largest oil producers, cutting daily supply by almost 10.0MM barrels/day to cope with the crisis that has unfolded over COVID-19 and the toll it has taken on the ticker price. Russia and Saudi Arabia are the most affected by the change, but investors hope this achieves some stability in one front of the global economy, fragile as emergency aid flows to keep people from getting infected, thus deteriorating regular use of energy and fossil fuels altogether. Norwegian Krone, Mexican Peso and Canadian Dollar saw a surge of about 1.0% to their value.
What to Watch Today…
- No major events scheduled today.
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JPY
Market sentiment is not looking as optimistic as last week with futures pointing at a weak open for a week where not all will be paying attention to production. The Yen certainly improved as a slowdown in appetite hits markets that realize a return to normal activity will not be in the cards for some time, longer than just the month of April. International Monetary Fund and other economic outlook estimates have a gloomy scenario brewing where German economy can shrink as much as 10.0% in Q2 which experts figure mean the Euro-zone could sustain a much longer period of recession as we course through COVID damage.
CAD
The Canadian Dollar experienced a bump as other petro-currencies flourished with news of OPEC+ reaching a deal. Nevertheless, the global economy will suffer for some time and it is priced in that oil demand will actually dwindle as a whole down the line with alternative energy gripping unexplored markets with advancements in wind and solar. The cut helps dilute a battle among economies that world can gladly be spared from. Slow times with some key items to digest will dominate the environment in what is left of April.
