Forex Today: Dollar plummets heading into year-end

FXStreet Team FXStreet

Here is what you need to know on Thursday, December 31:

The dollar remained under selling pressure. AUD, EUR, and CAD reached fresh year’s highs against the battered greenback, although the shared currency retreated ahead of the close. Commodity-linked currencies are the strongest, helped by the positive performance of Wall Street, as US indexes flirted with record highs.

The GBP/USD pair also advanced, despite mixed news coming from the UK. The House of Commons passed the post-Brexit deal, while Lords will likely pass it during the Asian session.

Also, the government approved the AstraZeneca covid vaccine for emergency use. The country reported over 50K new cases and over 1,000 deaths in the last 24 hours. Coronavirus cases are on the rise globally, but vaccine news are partially overshadowing concerns. The UK announced further restrictive measures to contain the spread.

US Republican Senator Mitch McConnell blocked a move by colleague Bernie Sanders to allow a vote on increasing stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000, adding pressure on the American currency. US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin announced that direct payments of $ 600 would be out as soon as this week.

Gold prices flirted with $1,900 a troy ounce amid the broad dollar’s weakness. The commodity finished the day with gains in the 1,890 price zone.

Breaking: Bitcoin price hits new all-time high at $28,900

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FXStreet Team

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EUR/USD plummets to 1.1840 on US NFP

EUR/USD’s selling momentum now picks up pace and rapidly hits the 1.1840 region on Wednesday. Indeed, the pair’s decline comes amid rising buying pressure on the US Dollar in the wake of firmer-than-expected results from US NFP in January.

GBP/USD approaches 1.3600 on USD-buying

GBP/USD adds to Tuesday’s pullback and trades closer to the 1.3600 support on Wednesday. That said, Cable’s extra downside traction comes against the backdrop of renewed strength in the Greenback as investors assess the latest US NFP data.

Gold trims gains post-NFP, targets $5,000

Gold rapidly reverses initial gains and retreats to the vicinity of the $5,000 region per troy ounce amid further gains in the Greenback and rising US Treasury yields, all following the latest US NFP readings.

Ripple Price Forecast: XRP sell-side pressure intensifies despite surge in addresses transacting on-chain

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.

US jobs data surprises to the upside, boosts stocks but pushes back Fed rate cut expectations

This was an unusual payrolls report for two reasons. Firstly, because it was released on Wednesday, and secondly, because it included the 2025 revisions alongside the January NFP figure.

Bitcoin price slips below $67,000 ahead of US Nonfarm Payrolls data

Bitcoin price extends losses, and trades below the lower consolidating boundary at $67,300 at the time of writing. A firm close below this level could trigger a deeper correction for BTC. Despite the weakness in price action, institutional demand shows signs of support, recording mild inflows in ETFs so far this week.