- Risky assets like stocks and cryptocurrencies remain well off their recent highs, which in many cases were all-time highs. However, most global stock market indices made small recoveries yesterday.
- In the Forex market, the Japanese yen is the weakest currency, while the U.S. dollar is relatively strong.
- The USD/JPY currency pair has advanced to make a new multi-month high, with odds in favor of further advances over the coming days.
- Australian GDP data was released showing an annualized growth rate of 3.1%, higher than the consensus forecast of 2.5%. However, the Australian dollar was unaffected by the news.
- Today will see the release of the British government’s annual budget, an event which typically affects the value of the British pound.
- Board Member of the Bank of Japan Kataoka has called for a stronger commitment to keeping rates lower for longer due to price stagnation keeping inflation way below its official 2% target. These comments have probably helped to weaken the Japanese yen slightly over the past few hours.
- The Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand will speak later today about the future of monetary policy, which may impact the value of the New Zealand dollar.
- Global coronavirus deaths have fallen sharply over the past five weeks to reach a level 25% lower than the peak. New confirmed cases have fallen to their lowest level in several months.
- In the U.S., the state of Texas has announced a complete end to all coronavirus restrictions, at odds with the policy of President Biden. The states of Michigan, Louisiana, and Mississippi have also taken similar measures.
- Total confirmed new coronavirus cases worldwide stand at over 115.3 million with an average case fatality rate of 2.22%. The numbers of confirmed new cases and deaths globally have been falling strongly since their peak in early January, so there are signs the recent heavy global wave of the disease has peaked.
- The fastest progression in terms of immunizing a population against the coronavirus has been in Israel, which has already administered a first shot of the Pfizer vaccine to 52% of its entire population and a second dose to 38% (which includes more than 80% of over-40s). The U.A.E. ranks second, having given 61 shots per 100 of its population. For most of the world, a vaccine remains distant. Progress remains slow in the hard-hit European Union with only two member states (Denmark and Hungary) having given more than 10 shots per 100 people. Denmark and Austria are beginning to explore ways to boost their vaccine provision outside E.U. structures.
- The rate of new coronavirus infections appears to now be increasing most quickly in Austria, Chile, Cyprus, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, Hungary, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lithuania, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Senegal, Serbia, Somalia, the Ukraine, and the U.A.E.
Forex Today: Stocks Recover Weakly; Forex Market Indecisive
Adam Lemon
It's a quiet and indecisive day in the markets.