Dollar index was 0.2 percent higher in late trading at 95.478

Good Morning,

- Nasdaq crossing 5,000 for the first time in 15 years and the dollar touched a fresh 11-year high. The dollar index was 0.2 percent higher in late trading at 95.478.

- Asian stocks ended higher as the S&P and Dow Jones posted record closing highs on Monday. The DJ jumped 155.93 points, to 18,288.63, the S&P gained 12.89 points, to 2,117.39.

- The Swiss economy grew twice as fast as economists forecast at the end of 2014, indicating resilience before the central bank scrapped a currency cap that was shielding exporters. Gross domestic product increased 0.6 percent in the three months through December, after an upwardly revised 0.7 percent a quarter earlier. That’s more than the 0.3 percent median of 18 estimates in a Bloomberg survey.

- Spanish, Italian and Portuguese yields fell to record lows as investors looked forward to the start of the European Central Bank's quantitative easing program later this month. ECB policymakers meet in Cyprus on Wednesday and Thursday.

- Investor expectations of the euro zone breaking apart rose to their highest level in two years in February, a survey showed on Tuesday, even after Greece agreed a financial lifeline with its euro zone partners. The sentix Euro Break-up Index (EBI) gave its highest reading since March 2013, with 38 percent of respondents expecting the bloc to break-up in the next 12 months, up from 24.3 percent in January.

- Euro zone countries are discussing a third bailout for Greece worth 30 billion to 50 billion euros, Spain's economy minister said on Monday, as Athens sought to quell fears it might run out of money before the end of March. Spain’s Economy Minister Luis de Guindos said the new rescue plan would set more flexible conditions for Greece, which had no alternative other than European support.

- Bank of America on EUR/USD: Macro strategy team has been a consistent bearish EUR, but has also been warning as of late about upside risks as 1Q comes to an end. 'The long-term outlook for the Euro remains negative, as ECB and Fed monetary policies diverge. However, data has recently turned more supportive for the Euro and could improve further as we see the lagged impact from the weak Euro and the low oil prices," BofA clarifies. "We believe that open-ended QE reflects a change in the ECB policy reaction function, which will eventually weaken the Euro further, but its impact will be seen as the policy is being implemented after 1Q. We expect the first Fed rate hike only in September," BofA adds. "We expect EUR/USD to strengthen to 1.16 by the end of 1Q, eventually weakening to 1.10 by the end of 2015 and to 1.05 by the end of 2016," BofA projects. "As we remain bearish in the longer term, we will sell short-term EUR/USD rallies," BofA advises

- RBA Statement: At its meeting today, the Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 2.25 per cent. Growth in the global economy continued at a moderate pace in 2014. A similar performance is expected by most observers in 2015, with the US economy continuing to strengthen, even as China’s growth slows a little from last year’s outcome. Commodity prices have declined over the past year, in some cases sharply. The price of oil in particular has fallen significantly. These trends appear to reflect a combination of lower growth in demand and, more importantly, significant increases in supply.

- Analyst Predicts the RBA's cash rate will be 1.5% by the end of the year and Australian economy will grow by just 1.8% in 2015. Unemployment to reach 7% by December ... and potentially as high as 7.5% next year. Believes the Reserve Bank and economists will be forced to downgrade GDP and inflation forecasts.

- Brent crude futures fell nearly 5 percent in London to below $60 a barrel after Iran said a deal on its nuclear program could be reached this week if the West lifts sanctions, which could boost the country's oil exports.

- Watch today: German consumption, US car sales, US stores.

Have a nice Day !