Risky market sentiment earlier in the week gave an advantage to trading safe-haven currencies such as the US dollar and Yen while other major currencies traded lower.
The dollar index hovered around the 96.50 level after hitting a 16 -month high last week following the Federal Reserve (Fed) paving the way for three 3 interest rate hikes in 2022.
Developments in the United States (US), Senator Joe Manchin who is a key individual for President Joe Biden’s $ 1.75 million domestic investment package declined to support the package.
Concerns over the risk of transmission of the Omicron coronavirus variant are growing prompting investors to be more cautious in making investments.
With the pressure, the Euro was seen as one of the highlights earlier in the week when it managed to perform well despite analysts expecting it to depreciate.
The pound also showed improvement in the European session yesterday, but came back under pressure in the New York session again.
The lowest performing currency at the beginning of the week was the Canadian dollar which received a tempis following the slump in the crude oil market. Demand for oil is expected to decline following the impact of Omicron’s contagion risk.
The Aussie dollar is likely to move gloomily after minutes of an Australian central bank policy meeting were scrutinized in a report published earlier in the Asian session.
Based on the minutes of the meeting, the board members of the meeting are committed to maintaining a monetary policy that supports the economy as it now faces the new risks of the Omicron wave.
Grieving commodity investors earlier in the week saw gold trading begin to signal for a lower fall after falling below the $ 1,800 per ounce level again in the New York session yesterday.
