Forex Today: Greenback’s corrective advance may continue

FXStreet Team FXStreet

Here is what you need to know on Monday, August 24:

The greenback advanced ahead of the weekend, partially backed by encouraging local data, yet also due to profit-taking amid the extreme oversold conditions of the American currency.

Coronavirus: Spain, France and Germany are seeing sharp increases in the number of new daily cases, reaching levels last seen in April. That, alongside contracting business activity is taking its toll on the common currency, which anyway remains near its yearly high against the dollar.

Another round of Brexit talks ended Friday without progress. A UK senior official said that a deal with the EU is still doable in September if they remove unnecessary obstacles, yet EU’s chief negotiator Barnier said that a deal would not be easy to achieve, adding he is disappointed and surprised that talks are not speeding up.

Gold prices entered a consolidative phase in the second half of the week, struggling to recover losses and closing it in the red around at $1,940 a troy ounce. Same goes for crude oil prices with WTI settling at $42 a barrel.

Wall Street advanced on Friday but closed the week pretty much unchanged. US Treasury yields, on the other hand, kept retreating, ending near weekly lows.

At the beginning of the week, New Zealand will publish Q2 Retail Sales, with nothing else relevant scheduled for the rest of the day.

Author

FXStreet Team

FXStreet

EUR/USD hits two-day highs near 1.1820

EUR/USD picks up pace and reaches two-day tops around 1.1820 at the end of the week. The pair’s move higher comes on the back of renewed weakness in the US Dollar amid growing talk that the Fed could deliver an interest rate cut as early as March. On the docket, the flash US Consumer Sentiment improves to 57.3 in February.

GBP/USD reclaims 1.3600 and above

GBP/USD reverses two straight days of losses, surpassing the key 1.3600 yardstick on Friday. Cable’s rebound comes as the Greenback slips away from two-week highs in response to some profit-taking mood and speculation of Fed rate cuts. In addition, hawkish comments from the BoE’s Pill are also collaborating with the quid’s improvement.

Gold climbs further, focus is back to 45,000

Gold regains upside traction and surpasses the $4,900 mark per troy ounce at the end of the week, shifting its attention to the critical $5,000 region. The move reflects a shift in risk sentiment, driving flows back towards traditional safe haven assets and supporting the yellow metal.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP rebound amid risk-off, $2.6 billion liquidation wave

Bitcoin edges up above $65,000 at the time of writing on Friday, as dust from the recent macro-triggered sell-off settles. The leading altcoin, Ethereum, hovers above $1,900, but resistance at $2,000 caps the upside. Meanwhile, Ripple has recorded the largest intraday jump among the three assets, up over 10% to $1.35.

Three scenarios for Japanese Yen ahead of snap election

The latest polls point to a dominant win for the ruling bloc at the upcoming Japanese snap election. The larger Sanae Takaichi’s mandate, the more investors fear faster implementation of tax cuts and spending plans.

XRP rally extends as modest ETF inflows support recovery

Ripple is accelerating its recovery, trading above $1.36 at the time of writing on Friday, as investors adjust their positions following a turbulent week in the broader crypto market. The remittance token is up over 21% from its intraday low of $1.12.