The NZD/USD rallied sharply on Wednesday, boosted by a double whammy. The de-escalation of the Middle East conflict, and hawkish remarks by the RBNZ Governor, Anna Breman, post the bank’s monetary policy meeting.
The USD/CHF retreats some 0.85% on Wednesday after failing to clear the April 7 daily high of 0.8010, and as the pair slides beneath the 200-day SMA of 0.7940, as market sentiment gets lifted by a two-week ceasefire in the Middle East conflict.
OCBC strategists Sim Moh Siong and Christopher Wong highlight that USD/INR has dropped sharply as RBI’s targeted regulatory measures curbed speculative positioning and tightened market microstructure.
Silver (XAG/USD) trades with a positive bias on Wednesday, supported by a broadly weaker US Dollar following a two-week ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran. At the time of writing, XAG/USD is trading around $74.50, up nearly 2% on the day after hitting an intraday high of $77.65.
Scotiabank strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret highlight that the Japanese Yen (JPY) has gained over 0.7% versus the US Dollar (USD) but still lags other G10 currencies as risk sentiment improves on the ceasefire.
The USD/JPY pair fell near the 158.30 region on Wednesday, even as the United States (US), Iran and Israel had agreed on a two-week ceasefire.
USD/CAD trades with a downside bias on Wednesday, as the US Dollar (USD) comes under broad selling pressure following a temporary ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran. At the time of writing, the pair is trading around 1.3847, extending losses for the third straight day.
The Pound Sterling rallies on Wednesday, advancing for the third straight day this week, up more than 1.10% due to broad US Dollar weakness, sparked by an improvement in risk appetite following a two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran.
Scotiabank strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret note that the Pound (GBP) is a strong G10 performer, gaining about 1.1% on sentiment-driven buying and pushing to the top of its late-February range.
The NZD/USD pair is up 1.6% to near 0.5830 in the European trading session on Wednesday.
TD Securities analysts review the latest Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) decision, noting the cash rate was held at 2.25% while inflation forecasts were revised sharply higher for Q1 and Q2.
The Australian Dollar (AUD) is trading higher against the US Dollar (USD) for the third consecutive day on Wednesday, boosted by investors’ optimism about the ceasefire in Iran.
The US Dollar (USD) accelerated its reversal against the Swiss Franc (CHF) on Wednesday, as investors pared back US Dollar long positions following the announcement of a ceasefire in Iran.
Commerzbank notes that the Dollar is selling off as risk sentiment improves, with the Euro rising close to 1.17 against the Dollar following the ceasefire news.
The Euro (EUR) trades lower against the British Pound (GBP) for the third consecutive day on Wednesday, with bears testing support at 0.8700 at the time of writing. The Pound fares better than the common currency amid the positive market sentiment triggered by the ceasefire in Iran.
The EUR/USD pair trades 0.75% higher to near 1.1700 during the European trading session on Wednesday. The major currency pair strengthens as the US Dollar (USD) underperforms amid an upbeat market mood.
Brown Brothers Harriman’s (BBH) Elias Haddad highlights that NZD/USD has surged over 2% on improved risk sentiment and a hawkish hold from the RBNZ.
EUR/JPY edges lower after two days of gains, trading around 185.00 during the European hours on Wednesday. The technical analysis of the daily chart suggests the currency cross is moving upwards within the ascending channel pattern, indicating bullish bias.
Eurozone Retail Sales, a key measure of consumer spending, decline by 0.2% month-on-month (MoM) in February, as expected, slower than 0.1% in January.
Commerzbank’s Volkmar Baur reports that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) left rates unchanged, but Governor Breman’s comments about discussing a hike were read as slightly hawkish, supporting the New Zealand Dollar (NZD) against the US Dollar (USD).
The USD/JPY pair trades 0.9% lower to near 158.20 during the European trading session on Wednesday. The pair faces intense selling pressure as the US Dollar (USD) underperforms across the board, following the announcement of a two-week ceasefire between the United States (US) and Iran.
The Pound (GBP) maintains its near.-term nullish bias against the Japanese Yen (JPY) intact, although bulls have been halted at the 212.80 area earlier on the day.
The USD/CAD pair extends its weekly downtrend for the third straight day and dives to a nearly two-week low on Wednesday, though it lacks follow-through selling. Spot prices trade around mid-1.3800s, down nearly 0.30% for the day, amid mixed fundamental cues.
Silver rallies on risk-on markets and reaches session highs above $77.00.
The AUD/USD pair climbs to around 0.7080, the highest since March 20, during the early European trading hours on Wednesday. The Australian Dollar (AUD) edges higher against the Greenback as the ceasefire between the US and Iran triggers a broad risk-on sentiment.