Forex Today: Economic contractions worse than anticipated

What you need to know on  Friday, April 24th:

• The greenback ends the day mixed, but mostly weaker. The EUR was the worst performer, after the release of the EU Markit preliminary estimates of April PMIs, which collapsed to record lows in the Union. Markit released estimates for most major economies, all of then indicating sharp contractions amid the coronavirus pandemic and the extent of lock-downs.
• EU representatives discussed a relief package. German’s Chancellor Angela Merkel said it must be “huge,” leading to a spike in the shared currency, although as they didn’t come to an agreement, the EUR faded.
• The GBP/USD pair held on to modest gains above the 1.2300 level, despite dismal UK data and conflicting Brexit-headlines. According to some “leaked” reports, the UK seems to be making “impossible demands” over access to Europol databases within the ongoing negotiations, while refusing to extend the transition period beyond December 31, despite the current coronavirus crisis.
• The USD/JPY pair jumped to 108.04 but settled unchanged around 107.60. The spike was triggered by headlines indicating that the Bank of Japan would discuss removing bond-buying limit during its next policy meeting scheduled for April 27.
• Gold soared, trading as high as $1,738.90 a troy ounce amid persistent demand for the safe-haven metal.
• Crude oil prices stabilized marginally higher, with WTI trading around $15,00 a barrel.  
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