Forex Today: High yields limit USD losses as Dems favored in Georgia, ADP NFP, Fed minutes eyed
|Here is what you need to know on Tuesday, January 6:
Democrats are seen as favorites to win both Senate races in Georgia after most of the counting is done. Prospects of fiscal stimulus are pushing yields higher and providing some support to the dollar. Concerns about the contagious covid variants and slow vaccination campaigns weigh on sentiment. The ADP jobs report and the Federal Reserve's minutes are eyed.
Georgia: Around 97% of votes have been counted in the dual Senate races that determine control of the Senate with remaining votes located in Democratic-leaning counties. Dems need to win both seats to effectively lead the upper chamber and push through additional stimulus.
Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler is trading by around 36,000 against Democratic rival Raphael Warnock. GOP Senator David Perdue is leading Democrat Jon Ossof by only 700 votes, and analysts foresee the race flipped toward Ossof once counting resumes in the US morning. If this second race is within 0.5%, a recount is held.
Rising chances of stimulus have pushed investors away from bonds, thus boosting the ten-year Treasury yield above 1%. This increase counters the losses of the safe-haven dollar.
President Donald Trump continues trying to overturn his loss ahead of the Wednesday session of Congress which is set to ratify President-elect Joe Biden's win. Markets are shrugging off prospects for a messy event.
Coronavirus: Germany extended its lockdown until the end of January amid a stubbornly high caseload and death toll. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is set to approve Moderna's vaccine on Wednesday. Governments across the continent are under pressure to ramp up the slow distribution of jabs.
Covid strain: Scientists in the UK are concerned that the South African variant may be more complex than the British one and potentially resistant to the virus. Britain is under a strict shuttering, reminiscent of the spring.
ADP's Nonfarm Payrolls are set to show a modest increase in positions in December after reporting a gain of 307,000 in December. The publication serves as a hint toward Friday's official labor report. The ISM Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index smashed expectations with 60.7 points, pointing to robust growth in the industrial sector.
The Federal Reserve releases meeting minutes from its last decision of 2020, which included a pledge to keep bond-buying at an elevated pace. Investors will try to find clues about the Fed's next moves.
WTI Crude Oil trades at around $50 after Saudi Arabia agreed to voluntarily cut its output by around one million barrels per day. The unilateral moves come despite an increase in output by Russia and Kazakhstan.
Bitcoin has surpassed the $35,000 level, a new historic high. Ethereum is changing hands above $1,100, carried higher as well.
Five factors moving the US dollar in 2021 and not necessarily to the downside
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