Forex Today: Dollar jittery amid cautious optimism, eyes on German IFO, virus stats

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

Here is what you need to know on Wednesday, June 24:

Cautious optimism emerged as the underlying theme in Asia, as the US dollar traded broadly subdued, with the bounce capped by the optimism over the global economic recovery. Upbeat Euro area Preliminary PMIs bolstered the narrative of a quicker economic rebound that triggered the Wall Street rally and downed the greenback.

The Asian stocks treaded water near four-month highs while the US equity futures defended minor bids. Investors turned cautious amid rising coronavirus cases in the US states, South Korea and Latin America.

On the fx front, most majors held onto thin trading ranges after a volatile session on Tuesday. USD/JPY consolidated the bounce from seven-week lows of 106.08, underpinned by the rebound in US Treasury yields.

AUD/USD once again failed to push through the top of the recent range and pared gains below 0.6950. The spike in new cases in Victoria and the resultant re-imposition of restrictions likely weighed on the AUD bulls.

NZD/USD holds the lower ground above 0.6450 after the RBNZ raised concerns on the NZD appreciation while left doors open for additional easing. The NZ central bank maintained the OCR and the QE programme size.

EUR/USD stuck to modest gains above 1.1300 ahead of the German IFO Survey. GBP/USD held steady above 1.2500, as optimism over the UK economic re-opening up faded.

Gold prices gathered pace to retest seven-year highs of $1773.57. WTI was on the defensive above $40 mark amid a build in the API crude stocks.

Cryptocurrencies traded in familiar ranges, with Bitcoin defending the $9600 barrier.

Author

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

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