What you need to take care of on Wednesday, February 21:
The US Dollar edged lower on Tuesday, extending its slide after the long weekend amid mounting speculation the Fed will further delay the first rate cut. The CME Group FedWatch Tool now shows market players are moving their bets towards June. The odds for a 25 basis points (bps) March rate cut had decreased to 34.4%, while June ones increased to 55.1%.
Stock markets traded with a tepid tone, with Wall Street spending most of the day in the red.
Bank of England (BoE) policymakers testified on inflation and the economic outlook before Parliament's Treasury Committee. Governor Andrew Bailey said that the UK economy is at full employment and added it is already showing distinct signs of an upturn. He added inflation does not need to fall back to 2% before rate cuts materialize, and commented it’s not unreasonable to expect a rate cut this year, although he refrained from providing a specific date.
Canada reported the January Consumer Price Index (CPI), which rose by 2.9% YoY s in January down from 3.4% in December, according to Statistics Canada
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will release the latest meeting Minutes on Wednesday. The document will likely provide fresh clues on what policymakers considered in their latest meeting to dismiss a March rate cut, while speculative interest will try to assess the odds and dates for upcoming cuts.
The EUR/USD pair neared 1.0840, holding above the 1.0800 level early Wednesday. GBP/USD settled around 1.2620. The Canadian Dollar was the worst performer vs the Greenback, as the pair trades around 1.3520. The AUD/USD, on the other hand, is up for a fifth consecutive day and trades around 0.6550. Finally, CHF and JPY posted modest losses vs the USD, while Gold topped $2,030 a troy ounce.
US Dollar price today
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies today. US Dollar was the weakest against the .
| USD | EUR | GBP | CAD | AUD | JPY | NZD | CHF | |
| USD | -0.29% | -0.25% | 0.19% | -0.30% | -0.13% | -0.42% | -0.11% | |
| EUR | 0.29% | 0.02% | 0.47% | 0.00% | 0.15% | -0.13% | 0.18% | |
| GBP | 0.25% | -0.04% | 0.43% | -0.05% | 0.10% | -0.18% | 0.14% | |
| CAD | -0.19% | -0.47% | -0.43% | -0.48% | -0.34% | -0.60% | -0.30% | |
| AUD | 0.30% | 0.00% | 0.04% | 0.47% | 0.16% | -0.13% | 0.18% | |
| JPY | 0.14% | -0.13% | -0.12% | 0.31% | -0.13% | -0.28% | 0.01% | |
| NZD | 0.41% | 0.13% | 0.17% | 0.60% | 0.13% | 0.28% | 0.31% | |
| CHF | 0.11% | -0.18% | -0.14% | 0.29% | -0.20% | -0.03% | -0.31% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Euro from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent EUR (base)/JPY (quote).
Information on these pages contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Markets and instruments profiled on this page are for informational purposes only and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy or sell in these assets. You should do your own thorough research before making any investment decisions. FXStreet does not in any way guarantee that this information is free from mistakes, errors, or material misstatements. It also does not guarantee that this information is of a timely nature. Investing in Open Markets involves a great deal of risk, including the loss of all or a portion of your investment, as well as emotional distress. All risks, losses and costs associated with investing, including total loss of principal, are your responsibility. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FXStreet nor its advertisers. The author will not be held responsible for information that is found at the end of links posted on this page.
If not otherwise explicitly mentioned in the body of the article, at the time of writing, the author has no position in any stock mentioned in this article and no business relationship with any company mentioned. The author has not received compensation for writing this article, other than from FXStreet.
FXStreet and the author do not provide personalized recommendations. The author makes no representations as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability of this information. FXStreet and the author will not be liable for any errors, omissions or any losses, injuries or damages arising from this information and its display or use. Errors and omissions excepted.
The author and FXStreet are not registered investment advisors and nothing in this article is intended to be investment advice.
Recommended content
Editors’ Picks
EUR/USD treads water just above 1.0400 post-US data
Another sign of the good health of the US economy came in response to firm flash US Manufacturing and Services PMIs, which in turn reinforced further the already strong performance of the US Dollar, relegating EUR/USD to the 1.0400 neighbourhood on Friday.
GBP/USD remains depressed near 1.2520 on stronger Dollar
Poor results from the UK docket kept the British pound on the back foot on Thursday, hovering around the low-1.2500s in a context of generalized weakness in the risk-linked galaxy vs. another outstanding day in the Greenback.
Gold keeps the bid bias unchanged near $2,700
Persistent safe haven demand continues to prop up the march north in Gold prices so far on Friday, hitting new two-week tops past the key $2,700 mark per troy ounce despite extra strength in the Greenback and mixed US yields.
Geopolitics back on the radar
Rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine caused renewed unease in the markets this week. Putin signed an amendment to Russian nuclear doctrine, which allows Russia to use nuclear weapons for retaliating against strikes carried out with conventional weapons.
Eurozone PMI sounds the alarm about growth once more
The composite PMI dropped from 50 to 48.1, once more stressing growth concerns for the eurozone. Hard data has actually come in better than expected recently – so ahead of the December meeting, the ECB has to figure out whether this is the PMI crying wolf or whether it should take this signal seriously. We think it’s the latter.
Best Forex Brokers with Low Spreads
VERIFIED Low spreads are crucial for reducing trading costs. Explore top Forex brokers offering competitive spreads and high leverage. Compare options for EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY, and Gold.