Forex Today: Dollar soars as Wall Street plunges

Valeria Bednarik FXStreet

What you need to take care of on Thursday, May 19:

The greenback edged higher against its high-yielding rivals but eased against safe-haven currencies, reflecting the dismal market mood.

Inflation was the primary catalyst of the latest bout of risk aversion. The EU Consumer Price Index was confirmed at 7.4% YoY in April, while the UK CPI increased by 9% in the year to April. Finally, the Canadian benchmark hit 6.8%. Overheating price pressures are a drag on economic growth, already undermined by supply-chain issues and the Eastern European crisis.

Two US institutes, Wells Fargo and S&P, downwardly revised growth forecasts but expect inflation to remain high. Wall Street resumed its slump, with the three major indexes sinking in the red. The DJIA is about to close over 1,100 lower, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite are down over 4% each.

The yield on the US 10-year Treasury note stands below 2.90%, as investors rushed into bonds’ safety.

The EUR/USD pair trades around 1.0460, while GBP/USD is now at 1.2340. The AUD/USD pair plunged to 0.6960 while USD/CAD recovered the 1.2800 threshold. On the other hand, the USD/CHF fell to 0.9880 while USD/JPY trades in the 128.20 price zone.

XAUUSD was unable to attract speculative interest, now hovering around $1,816 a troy ounce. Crude oil prices edged lower, with WTI now changing hands at $106.90 a barrel.

Top 3 Price Prediction Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP: Cryptos build momentum for a flash crash

Like this article? Help us with some feedback by answering this survey:

Author

Valeria Bednarik

FXStreet

Valeria Bednarik was born and lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Her passion for math and numbers pushed her into studying economics in her younger years.

EUR/USD holds steady above 1.1850 as markets eye Eurozone GDP, US CPI inflation releases

The EUR/USD pair trades on a flat note near 1.1870 during the early Asian session on Friday. The major pair steadies amid mixed signals from the latest release of US economic indicators. Traders await the preliminary reading of the Eurozone Gross Domestic Product for the fourth quarter and US inflation data, which are published later on Friday.

GBP/USD consolidates around 1.3600 vs. USD; looks to US CPI for fresh impetus

The GBP/USD pair remains on the defensive through the Asian session on Friday, though it lacks bearish conviction and holds above the 1.3600 mark as traders await the release of the US consumer inflation figures before placing directional bets.

Gold recovers toward $5,000 as focus shifts to US CPI

Gold price is recovering ground toward $5,000 in the Asian session on Friday. The yellow metal tumbled roughly 3.50% on Thursday, with algorithmic traders appearing to amplify the precious metal’s sudden drop. Traders will closely monitor the release of the US Consumer Price Index inflation report for January, which will be released later on Friday.

Ethereum investors face huge unrealized losses following price slump

US spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds flipped negative again on Wednesday after recording net outflows of $129.1 million, reversing mild inflows seen at the beginning of the week, per SoSoValue data. Fidelity's FETH was responsible for more than half of withdrawals, posting outflows of $67 million.

A tale of two labour markets: Headline strength masks underlying weakness

Undoubtedly, yesterday’s delayed US January jobs report delivered a strong headline – one that surpassed most estimates. However, optimism quickly faded amid sobering benchmark revisions.

Aster Price Forecast: Demand sparks on Binance Wallet partnership for on-chain perpetuals

Aster is up roughly 9% so far on Thursday, hinting at the breakout of a crucial resistance level. Aster partners up with Binance wallet for the second season of the on-chain perpetuals challenge.