S. Korea confirms 87 new coronavirus cases, USD/KRW corrective downside intact

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) confirmed 87 new coronavirus cases on Friday, bringing up the total count to 8,652. On Wednesday, the South reported 152 new infections.

The daily count of new cases has been falling over the past week, despite a slight uptick on Thursday as small-scale outbreaks continued to emerge across the country.

“Of the new cases, 34 were from the hardest-hit city of Daegu where dozens of patients at several nursing homes have tested positive for the virus this week”, the KCDC data showed, as cited by Reuters.

Meanwhile, the country reported 3 new deaths, bringing up the death toll to 94 while a total of 2,233 patients recovered fully.

USD/KRW consolidates the correction

USD/KRW holds the lower ground near mid-1200s, consolidating the corrective slide from an eleven-year high of 1,292.65 reached on Thursday.

The South Korean government economic stimulus combined with the central bank’s liquidity injections seem to have helped stem the won declines. Meanwhile, a downtick in the number of new infections in South Korea also appear to bode well for the local currency so far this Friday.

S. Korea’s Foreign Ministry: S. Korea, China, Japan to discuss coronavirus response - Reuters

Author

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

EUR/USD remains sidelined around 1.1600

EUR/USD clings to its decent gains on Monday and continues to move in a consolidative mood around the 1.1600 region. Improved risk appetite following the US-Iran agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz continues to weigh on the US Dollar, lending support to the risk complex. Looking ahead, investors are likely to remain on the sidelines ahead of Wednesday's FOMC meeting.

GBP/USD retreats from tops, back to 1.3420

GBP/USD keeps its advance past the 1.3400 yardstick at the beginning of the week. In the meantime, Cable continues to draw support from improved market sentiment following reports that the US and Iran have reached a framework agreement aimed at ending the conflict and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

Gold stays firm, still below $4,400

Gold builds on its recent gains on Monday, climbing well north of the $4,300 mark per troy ounce. The yellow metal benefits from renewed selling pressure on the Greenback as investors reassess the implications of the US-Iran agreement to end hostilities and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Market participants now turn their attention to Wednesday's FOMC gathering.