Forex Today: Dollar bulls take over amid renewed growth fears

Valeria Bednarik FXStreet

What you need to know on Wednesday, September 29:

Risk aversion took over financial markets, and the American dollar was the overall winner. The dismal mood was triggered by a series of factors related to a slowing global economic comeback.

Power cuts in China have been blamed on rising coal prices leading to short supply. The situation may well extend for a few months threatening economic growth. In the UK, gas stations have been clogged with cars since late last week, amid fears supplies are running low, exacerbating supply chain issues. The government has put the army to deliver gasoline in an attempt to cool down panic buying. The crisis started over a tanker drivers’ shortage.

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde commented on inflation. She noted that inflation expectations do not point to risks of prolonged overshooting, adding that the EU still needs an accommodative monetary policy stance. Other ECB policymakers are scheduled to speak throughout the day.

US Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell testified before Congress and said that “it's fair to say” inflation is more concerning than earlier this year, citing supply chain issues. He also repeated that they “have all but met” the test for tapering.

EUR/USD fell to 1.1667 and trades nearby a few pips above the 2021 yearly low. The pound was among the worse performers, with GBP/USD currently trading around 1.3530. The USD/JPY pair soared alongside US government bond yields and trades in the 111.50 price zone.

US Treasury yields kept advancing, with the yield on the 10-year note reaching an intraday high of 1.567%. European and Asian indexes closed in the red, while Wall Street was mixed throughout the day, but finally gave up and also closed in negative territory.

AUD/USD fell sub-0.7240, dragged by equities and gold prices. The bright metal fell to a fresh one-month low, currently trading around $1,732 a troy ounce. The USD/CAD pair added some modest 50 pips on a daily basis, now trading at around 1.2680, as oil weakened just modestly. WTI is down to $74.75 a barrel.

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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.

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