Australian Dollar rises as Trump’s peace call with Iran improves market mood
- Australian Dollar gains as Trump’s willingness to end the war has underpinned market sentiment.
- US President Trump shows readiness to end the Middle East war despite Hormuz remaining closed.
- RBA members agreed that further policy tightening is needed.
The Australian Dollar (AUD) trades higher against its major currency peers, with the AUD/USD pair rising 0.15% to near 0.6865, during the European trading session on Tuesday. The antipodean gains as the market sentiment turns risk-on, following United States (US) President Donald Trump’s statement that he is willing to end the war with Iran despite the Strait of Hormuz remaining closed.
Australian Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of Australian Dollar (AUD) against listed major currencies today. Australian Dollar was the strongest against the New Zealand Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | -0.06% | -0.19% | -0.08% | 0.12% | -0.08% | 0.20% | 0.09% | |
| EUR | 0.06% | -0.12% | 0.02% | 0.26% | 0.00% | 0.29% | 0.18% | |
| GBP | 0.19% | 0.12% | 0.13% | 0.35% | 0.13% | 0.40% | 0.31% | |
| JPY | 0.08% | -0.02% | -0.13% | 0.21% | -0.01% | 0.27% | 0.19% | |
| CAD | -0.12% | -0.26% | -0.35% | -0.21% | -0.22% | 0.06% | -0.03% | |
| AUD | 0.08% | -0.00% | -0.13% | 0.00% | 0.22% | 0.29% | 0.19% | |
| NZD | -0.20% | -0.29% | -0.40% | -0.27% | -0.06% | -0.29% | -0.10% | |
| CHF | -0.09% | -0.18% | -0.31% | -0.19% | 0.03% | -0.19% | 0.10% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Australian Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent AUD (base)/USD (quote).
S&P 500 futures are up over 0.7% to near 6,400, reflecting the improved risk appetite of investors.
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), US President Trump told aides he is willing to end the US military campaign against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed. The report also stated that administration officials assessed that forcing the waterway back open would mean extending the military mission beyond their timeline of four to six weeks.
The end of a month-long war in the Middle East would ease geopolitical tensions; however, the issue of the higher oil price outlook due to fears of the Strait of Hormuz remaining closed would keep pressure intact on currencies from economies that rely heavily on oil imports to meet their energy needs.
On the monetary policy front, Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) minutes of the March monetary policy meeting showed, earlier in the day, that the majority of policymakers agreed that “further tightening would likely be needed, but differed on the timing”.
In the policy meeting, the RBA announced a 25 basis point (bps) hike in the Official Cash Rate (OCR), pushing it higher to 4.1%, and clarified that inflationary pressures were already higher before the Middle East war-led surge in oil prices.
Risk sentiment FAQs
In the world of financial jargon the two widely used terms “risk-on” and “risk off'' refer to the level of risk that investors are willing to stomach during the period referenced. In a “risk-on” market, investors are optimistic about the future and more willing to buy risky assets. In a “risk-off” market investors start to ‘play it safe’ because they are worried about the future, and therefore buy less risky assets that are more certain of bringing a return, even if it is relatively modest.
Typically, during periods of “risk-on”, stock markets will rise, most commodities – except Gold – will also gain in value, since they benefit from a positive growth outlook. The currencies of nations that are heavy commodity exporters strengthen because of increased demand, and Cryptocurrencies rise. In a “risk-off” market, Bonds go up – especially major government Bonds – Gold shines, and safe-haven currencies such as the Japanese Yen, Swiss Franc and US Dollar all benefit.
The Australian Dollar (AUD), the Canadian Dollar (CAD), the New Zealand Dollar (NZD) and minor FX like the Ruble (RUB) and the South African Rand (ZAR), all tend to rise in markets that are “risk-on”. This is because the economies of these currencies are heavily reliant on commodity exports for growth, and commodities tend to rise in price during risk-on periods. This is because investors foresee greater demand for raw materials in the future due to heightened economic activity.
The major currencies that tend to rise during periods of “risk-off” are the US Dollar (USD), the Japanese Yen (JPY) and the Swiss Franc (CHF). The US Dollar, because it is the world’s reserve currency, and because in times of crisis investors buy US government debt, which is seen as safe because the largest economy in the world is unlikely to default. The Yen, from increased demand for Japanese government bonds, because a high proportion are held by domestic investors who are unlikely to dump them – even in a crisis. The Swiss Franc, because strict Swiss banking laws offer investors enhanced capital protection.
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