The US dollar remained high after recording a sharp surge in the New York session after Pfizer announced that the Covid-19 vaccine co-developed with BioNTech was 90% effective in preventing coronavirus.
After the announcement of Pfizer, Dr Anthony Fauci said the Moderna vaccine is likely to produce similar results as they use the technology and are in the same trial phase.
Following that, the Dow Jones Industrial Average index jumped over 800 points while the 10-year treasury yield reached its highest level since March. The greenback dollar jumped more than 2% against the Japanese yen and over 1% against the Swiss Franc.
Positive developments on vaccines have also supported sentiment to move to risky currencies, but following the US dollar surge, major currencies recorded a downturn.
The greenback has benefited from the market belief that stimulus measures may no longer be needed if vaccines are given to the entire U.S. population.
The strengthening of the US dollar has led to the depreciation of the euro but remains stable around the 1.1800 price level.
The pound maintained its strength around 1.3150 against the US dollar after UK Finance Minister Rishi Sunak said significant progress had been made in Brexit negotiations as well as supported by vaccine reports.
Positive news about Brexit has supported the pound currency from falling lower due to the rising US dollar.
Meanwhile, the Aussie dollar and the New Zealand dollar also benefited from positive news about the vaccine but declined slightly following the greenback dollar surge.
The Canadian dollar depreciated against the US dollar after initially rising to a 2-year high following Pfizer's announcement.
