Forex Today: Markets optimistic ahead of the US Nonfarm Payroll report

Valeria Bednarik FXStreet

What you need to know on Friday, October 10:

Markets were in a better mood on Thursday, amid news that US Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer announced an agreement on extending the debt ceiling by $408 billion until early December.

Also, gas prices declined in Europe, taking off some of the pressure seen these days. Gas prices soared to records this week amid supply concerns, easing today after US President Vladimir Putin said it would consider increasing gas supplies. Putin said to be thinking about a “carefully” possible increase in gas supplies, as the current hike in prices is not beneficial for Russia. “The high prices do not meet Russia's interests and the market needs to be stabilized as soon as possible,” Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak added.

Crude oil prices initially fell, but finished the day with substantial gains, with WTI trading at around $78.80 a barrel at the end of the day.

Gold traded with a softer tone amid dominant risk appetite, although given the decreased dollar’s demand, the bright metal held within familiar levels. Spot gold settled at around $1,756 a troy ounce.

The EUR/USD pair held around 1.1550, unable to take advantage of the broad dollar’s weakness, as dismal EU data keeps undermining demand for the shared currency. GBP/USD posted a modest advance and settled around 1.3620. Commodity-linked currencies were the best performers, reaching fresh weekly highs. AUD/USD trades around 0.7310 while USD/CAD hovers around 1.2540.

Safe-haven currencies edged lower against the greenback, as US government bond yields recovered toward the upper end of their weekly range. Also, global equities posted substantial gains.

Market attention now shifts to the US Nonfarm Payroll report. US Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell has said that a good employment report could be enough to convince him on tapering, hence the relevance of the figures.

Bitcoin targets $60,000 next as BTC enters new leg up in bull market

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 stabilizes near 1.1800 as markets focus on geopolitics

EUR/USD stays defensive around 1.1800 in the second half of the day on Thursday. The US Dollar stabilizes, following the recent decline led by tariff uncertainty, capping the pair's upside. All eyes now remain on the US-Iran nuclear talks after ECB President Lagarde's testimony failed to impress Euro bulls.

GBP/USD holds above 1.3500, struggles to gain traction

GBP/USD rebound from session lows but stays below 1.3550 on Thursday. The cautious market stance helps the US Dollar stay resilient against its rivals and makes it difficult for the pair gather recovery momentum. Investors await headlines that will come out of the US-Iran nuclear talks.

Gold clings to small gains near $5,200 ahead of US-Iran talks

Gold trades marginally higher on the day above $5,150 on Thursday as investors refrain from taking large positions. The US and Iran will hold the next round of nuclear talks in Geneva on Thursday, outcome of which could have significant implications for risk perception.

Stellar: Relief bounce fades as bearish undertone persists

Stellar is trading around $0.16 at the time of writing on Thursday after rebounding more than 8% in the previous day. Derivatives data paints a negative picture as XLM’s short bets hit a monthly high while Open Interest continues to decline.

The one thing everyone is on the lookout for is US action of some sort against Iran

The FX market is minestrone soup these days. It is befuddled by conflicting data, rumors and small stories exaggerated out of proportion, and Trump-generated uncertainty.

Solana strikes key resistance with double-digit gains

Solana trades at $88 at press time on Thursday, after an 11% upswing the previous day within a broader consolidation range of roughly three weeks. Institutional demand for Solana heightens as US spot SOL Exchange Traded Funds record $30 million of inflow on Wednesday.