Forex Today: US Dollar rebounds despite trade uncertainty
Here is what you need to know on Monday, Tuesday 24:
Following a bearish opening to the week, the US Dollar (USD) managed to stabilize against its rivals on Monday, with the USD Index closing the day virtually unchanged. Early Tuesday, the USD Index continues to edge higher as markets keep a close eye on tariff-related headlines. In the second half of the day, ADP Employment Change 4-week Average and the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index data for February will be featured in the US economic calendar. Several Federal Reserve (Fed) policymakers will be delivering speeches as well.
US Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies today. US Dollar was the strongest against the Japanese Yen.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.16% | 0.09% | 0.37% | 0.03% | -0.02% | -0.04% | 0.27% | |
| EUR | -0.16% | -0.08% | 0.20% | -0.13% | -0.19% | -0.20% | 0.10% | |
| GBP | -0.09% | 0.08% | 0.29% | -0.06% | -0.11% | -0.12% | 0.18% | |
| JPY | -0.37% | -0.20% | -0.29% | -0.34% | -0.39% | -0.41% | -0.10% | |
| CAD | -0.03% | 0.13% | 0.06% | 0.34% | -0.06% | -0.07% | 0.24% | |
| AUD | 0.02% | 0.19% | 0.11% | 0.39% | 0.06% | -0.01% | 0.29% | |
| NZD | 0.04% | 0.20% | 0.12% | 0.41% | 0.07% | 0.00% | 0.30% | |
| CHF | -0.27% | -0.10% | -0.18% | 0.10% | -0.24% | -0.29% | -0.30% |
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 US Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent USD (base)/JPY (quote).
The USD came under pressure early Monday as markets reacted to the US Supreme Court's ruling against US President Donald Trump's tariffs and Trump's response of raising global tariffs to 15% from 10% "effective immediately." As Wall Street's main indexes started the day deep in the red, however, the USD benefited from safe haven flows in the American trading hours. Early Tuesday, US stock index futures trade marginally higher, while the USD Index clings to modest daily gains near 97.90. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Trump administration is planning to to introduce new national security tariffs on a half-dozen industries, issued under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 and separate from the 15% global levy US President announced on Saturday.
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC), China's central bank, announced early Tuesday that it left the one-year and five-year Loan Prime Rates (LPRs) unchanged at 3.00% and 3.50%, respectively. This decision came in line with the market expectation and failed to trigger a noticeable market reaction.
After climbing above 1.1830 in the first half of the day on Monday, EUR/USD lost its traction and registered small daily losses. The pair continues to edge lower in the European morning on Tuesday and was last seen trading near 1.1770.
USD/JPY erased a majority of its daily losses in the American session on Monday and ended the day with small losses. The pair gathers bullish momentum and trades comfortably above 155.00 to start the European session. Japan’s Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said on Tuesday that the government will closely examine details of the US Supreme Court decision on tariffs.
GBP/USD stays relativley quiet after failing to make a decisive move in either direction on Monday and fluctuates in a tight channel below 1.3500.
Gold gained more than 2% on Monday and extended its rally to a fresh February-high above $5,200 in the early Asian session on Tuesday before reversing its direction. At the time of press, Gold was trading slightly above $5,150, losing more than 1% on the day.
Tariffs FAQs
Tariffs are customs duties levied on certain merchandise imports or a category of products. Tariffs are designed to help local producers and manufacturers be more competitive in the market by providing a price advantage over similar goods that can be imported. Tariffs are widely used as tools of protectionism, along with trade barriers and import quotas.
Although tariffs and taxes both generate government revenue to fund public goods and services, they have several distinctions. Tariffs are prepaid at the port of entry, while taxes are paid at the time of purchase. Taxes are imposed on individual taxpayers and businesses, while tariffs are paid by importers.
There are two schools of thought among economists regarding the usage of tariffs. While some argue that tariffs are necessary to protect domestic industries and address trade imbalances, others see them as a harmful tool that could potentially drive prices higher over the long term and lead to a damaging trade war by encouraging tit-for-tat tariffs.
During the run-up to the presidential election in November 2024, Donald Trump made it clear that he intends to use tariffs to support the US economy and American producers. In 2024, Mexico, China and Canada accounted for 42% of total US imports. In this period, Mexico stood out as the top exporter with $466.6 billion, according to the US Census Bureau. Hence, Trump wants to focus on these three nations when imposing tariffs. He also plans to use the revenue generated through tariffs to lower personal income taxes.
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