MUFG’s Senior Currency Analyst Lloyd Chan maintains a defensive stance on Asia FX as the US‑Iran conflict keeps external pressures elevated. Higher US yields and Oil prices are supporting the Dollar and weighing on Asian currencies such as THB, PHP and KRW.
Alan Taylor, an external member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England (BoE), said that he currently sees a high bar to hiking the rates at a conference in New York hosted by Exante Data. He also added that the current energy shock looks more like the 2011 situation than the 2022.
NZD/USD extends its downward move on Thursday, trading around 0.5770 at the time of writing, down 0.65% on the day. The pair is now on its third consecutive day of losses after failing to hold near the 0.5900 area reached last week.
Standard Chartered Bank analysts Bader Al Sarraf and Razia Khan assess how the Middle East escalation and potential Strait of Hormuz disruptions could affect Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) economies.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) fell around 230 points, or roughly 0.5%, on Thursday, giving back the previous session's gains as surging Oil prices and collapsing ceasefire optimism crushed risk appetite. The S&P 500 dropped 0.8%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite shed 1.1%.
United States 7-Year Note Auction increased to 4.255% from previous 3.79%
USD/CHF extends gains on Thursday as broad-based US Dollar (USD) strength persists amid rising Middle East tensions, while the Swiss Franc (CHF) struggles to gain traction as traders remain cautious about potential intervention from the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to curb excessive currency appreciati
The USD/JPY trades higher near the 159.70 level on Thursday, March 26, maintaining an overall bullish bias as the US Dollar (USD) remains supported while the Japanese Yen (JPY) stays under pressure.
Silver (XAG/USD) trades lower on Thursday, hovering around $68.50 at the time of writing, down 3.85% on the day, extending its pullback after earlier gains this week.
ING’s Francesco Pesole notes that Norges Bank delivered a hawkish shift, signalling upcoming rate hikes as inflation concerns extend beyond the energy shock. The bank now fully prices at least one hike in its projections, while ING expects only one move given its bearish Oil and gas baseline.
Gold (XAU/USD) edges lower on Thursday, snapping a two-day winning streak as uncertainty surrounding US-Iran negotiations to end the conflict keeps markets on edge, with price action largely driven by hawkish global interest rate expectations stemming from an Oil-driven inflation shock.
The Canadian Dollar (CAD) stays on the back foot against the US Dollar (USD) on Thursday, as rising Middle East tensions and ongoing uncertainty around US-Iran negotiations keep the Greenback firmly supported across the board.
