Forex Today: Sentiment could take a turn to the worse amid coronavirus explosion

FXStreet Team FXStreet

Here is what you need to know on Friday, October 23:

The American dollar remained under selling pressure at the end of the week, amid political jitters in the US. Republicans and Democrats have continued to discuss a coronavirus stimulus aid package, reporting progress in discussions and indicating that they were “almost there” on an agreement. At the same time, however, politicians said that chances of a bill being approved before the presidential election are quite slim.

The EUR/USD pair settled at the upper end of its latest range, around 1.1860. Speculative interest ignored coronavirus-related news coming from the EU, as several countries reported record numbers of new cases while the health systems are showing their first signs of stress.

Governments have refused to impose full lockdowns, but are clearly moving in such direction, which will mean a further delay in a possible economic recovery. Things in the US, however, are no better, as the country a record high of 82,668 cases on Saturday. The world reported roughly 490K new contagions on Friday.

GBP/USD finished the week above 1.3000, with limited bullish potential. Investors are cautiously optimistic about Brexit talks after French President Emmanuel Macron has said to the local fishing industry to brace for impact, somehow indicated that a deal is closer.

Commodity-linked currencies held within familiar levels throughout the week, trapped between the broad US dollar’s weakness and lower gold and oil prices. Gold settled around $1,900 a troy ounce while WTI finished the week below $40.00 a barrel.

The US presidential campaign heated up after the final debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. As of today, Biden is still leading national polls, although Trump seems to be cutting off the distance as the date approaches.

Top 3 Losers of The Week Crypto.com, Filecoin, ABBC Coins: these three altcoins struggle to keep up with the market

Author

FXStreet Team

FXStreet

Composed of a group of economic journalists and FX experts, the FXStreet content team produces and oversees all content published on FXStreet. It provides a purely journalistic approach to the Forex market.

USD/JPY eyes August swing low, near 155.20 ahead of US NFP

USD/JPY retests the August monthly swing low during the Asian session on Friday as a more hawkish repricing of BoJ rate-hike bets and a suspected intervention continue to underpin the Japanese Yen. Meanwhile, the US Dollar is seen consolidating the previous day's heavy losses amid soft US bond yields, further weighing on the currency pair as traders keenly await the US NFP report.

AUD/USD consolidates above 0.7200; US NFP awaited

AUD/USD holds steady above 0.7200, near its highest level since mid-May, as bulls await the US NFP report for more cues on the Fed's policy path before placing fresh bets. Meanwhile, the recent decline in US bond yields keeps the US Dollar depressed near its lowest level in over a week and acts as a tailwind for the Aussie amid the RBA's hawkish tilt.

Gold tumbles as blockbuster US NFP lift US Dollar, Treasury yields

Gold (XAU/USD) falls sharply on Friday, snapping a two-day recovery after the US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report surprised strongly to the upside. The metal briefly climbed above $4,500 on Thursday, gaining nearly 2%, but has since erased a large part of that advance.

Crypto’s $638 million buyback boom may not be as bullish as it looks

Decentralized Finance (DeFi) protocols reportedly spent $638 million to buy back their native tokens in August, up 17% from a year earlier. On the surface, the buyback trend suggests the cryptocurrency industry is maturing fast, adopting one of Wall Street’s oldest tools to bolster valuations and distribute revenue. The headline becomes less impressive once the number is opened up.

Why hawkish Bank of Japan expectations aren't enough to sustain the Japanese Yen rally

The Japanese Yen (JPY) experienced a sudden burst higher after falling back below the 160.00 psychological mark against the US Dollar (USD) earlier this week amid a more hawkish repricing of Bank of Japan (BoJ) rate hike expectations.

Diesel’s record $100 warning: The oil shock hiding in plain sight

The Oil market may look calmer than it did a few months ago, but diesel is sending a very different message. The US diesel crack spread, the premium of ultra-low sulphur diesel futures over WTI, recently surged above $100 per barrel for the first time, reaching an intraday record of just over $102.00.