Forex Today: Slow start to another busy week

FXStreet Team FXStreet

What you need to know on Monday, May 4th:

The American dollar closed Friday mixed, down against its EUR and the JPY but up against other major rivals. Commodity-linked currencies were the ones that suffered the most, as Wall Street plunged.

The US April ISM Manufacturing PMI came in at 41.5, down fro the previous 49.1 but above the expected 36.9. The sub-components, however, were quite disappointing, particularly the employment one, which plunged to 27.5.

US President Trump menaced to impose fresh tariffs on China amid the miss-handling of the coronavirus outbreak, weighing on the market’s sentiment. Wall Street closed deep in the red, further undermined by dismal earnings reports.

UK PM Johnson was optimistic about the coronavirus situation, as he tweeted that the kingdom is “past the peak and on the downward slope.” Nevertheless, it is quite unlikely that the UK will lift the lockdown anytime soon, suggesting an extended economic setback ahead.

Gold prices recovered ground on Friday amid renewed risk aversion. Spot gold settled at around $1,700.00.

US crude oil settled just below $20.00 a barrel after Baker Hughes reported the number of active rigs declined for a seventh consecutive week to 408 from 465 in the previous week.

Cryptocurrencies spent Sunday consolidating near their recent highs. BTC/USD clings to modest gains above $9,000.

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EUR/USD flat lines below 1.1900; divergent Fed-ECB expectations offer support

The EUR/USD pair struggles to capitalize on the overnight bounce from the 1.1835-1.1830 region and oscillates in a narrow band during the Asian session on Thursday. Spot prices currently trade around the 1.1875 area, remaining nearly unchanged for the day and staying within striking distance of an over one-week high, reached on Tuesday, amid mixed cues.

GBP/USD slips heading into the Thursday trading window

The Pound Sterling pulled back from four-year highs on Wednesday, weighed down by a combination of Bank of England dovishness and UK political uncertainty, even as the US Dollar weakened on soft labor market revisions.

Gold posts modest gains above $5,050 as US-Iran tensions persist despite strong labor data

Gold price trades in positive territory near $5,060 during the early Asian session on Thursday. The precious metal edges higher despite stronger-than-expected US employment data. The release of the US Consumer Price Index inflation report will take center stage later on Friday.

Bitcoin holds steady despite strong US labour market

Bitcoin briefly bounced from $66,000 to above $68,000 but slightly reversed those gains following Wednesday's US January jobs report. The top crypto is hovering around $67,000, down 2% over the past 24 hours as of writing on Wednesday.

The market trades the path not the past

The payroll number did not just beat. It reset the tone. 130,000 vs. 65,000 expected, with a 35,000 whisper. 79 of 80 economists leaning the wrong way. Unemployment and underemployment are edging lower. For all the statistical fog around birth-death adjustments and seasonal quirks, the core message was unmistakable. The labour market is not cracking.

XRP sell-off deepens amid weak retail interest, risk-off sentiment

Ripple (XRP) is edging lower around $1.36 at the time of writing on Wednesday, weighed down by low retail interest and macroeconomic uncertainty, which is accelerating risk-off sentiment.