A 50bps March Fed rate hike is warranted – Bloomberg Economics

The EUR/USD pair is seen oscillating in a narrow range during the Asian session on Friday and consolidating its recent strong gains to an over two-week high, touched the previous day. Spot prices currently trade around the 1.1635 area, nearly unchanged for the day and below the 50-day Simple Moving Average pivotal barrier.

GBP/USD retraces its recent gains from the previous session, trading around 1.3150 during the Asian hours on Friday. The pair depreciates as the Pound Sterling declines amid rising concerns over fiscal discipline and political stability in the United Kingdom.

Gold regains positive traction on Friday following the overnight pullback from a three-week high. Economic concerns weigh on the USD and support the XAU/USD pair amid the risk-off impulse. Reduced bets for a December Fed rate cut might keep a lid on further gains for the yellow metal.

Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple trade in red on Friday after correcting more than 5%, 10% and 2%, respectively, so far this week. BTC has slipped below the $100,000 key level, while ETH and XRP have faced rejection at their resistance levels, signaling that bears remain firmly in control and that a deeper correction may be underway.

The Bank of Japan once again finds itself walking a tightrope between political pressure, economic data, and market expectations. With interest rates still anchored at 0.5%, speculation is growing over when Governor Ueda will pull the trigger on the next hike.

Solana (SOL) marks the third consecutive week of losses, dropping over 13% so far this week. The two-week-old Solana spot Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) in the US have recorded the lowest net inflows ever, suggesting softer institutional demand.