USD/JPY Is Above 137.00, The Aussie Pair Is Trading Below 0.66, GBP/USD And EUR/USD Are Also Lower
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The dollar hit multi-month highs against most other major currencies on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell warned that US interest rates may need to rise even faster and higher than expected to contain stubborn inflation. Powell told lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Tuesday that recent economic data from the United States was better than expected, so the pace and size of future hikes may also need to be stepped up, pushing expectations for short-term US interest rates higher.
Higher interest rates are good for the dollar as they improve its yield and investors seek safety while global stock markets fall.
The dollar also surpassed its 200-day moving average against the yen for the first time this year. The dovish slope from the RBA contrasted with the hawkish Jerome Powell.
USD/JPY
The yen pair started the day trading above 137.40 and rising towards 137.90. After this increase, the USD/JPY pair began to fall. At the time of writing, the USD/JPY pair was above 137.40, but has the potential to fall further towards 137.30.
On the Japanese front, during the final political meeting with Governor Haruhiko Kuroda this week, the Japanese central bank will maintain a very loose monetary policy. Data on Tuesday showed Japan's real wages fell by the most in nine years in January, as four-decade high inflation erodes Japan's purchasing power.
EUR/USD
The EUR/USD pair started trading above 1.0545, but quickly started a decline towards 1.0530. After this decline, the EUR/USD pair started rising towards 1.0545 and kept trading in the 1.0540-1.545 range. At the time of writing, papra has dropped to 1.0540 and is now at 1.0537.
German data released today showed that retail sales weakened more than expected, while industrial production rose sharply, easily beating forecasts.
Moreover, the hawkish tone of Powell's comments also seems to have an impact on expectations of interest rate hikes by the European Central Bank (ECB). According to Reuters, markets see a 65% probability that the ECB's final interest rate will be 4.25% this year, compared to a 4.00% final interest rate last week alone. The ECB's hawkish bets could help the euro limit losses in the short term.
GBP/USD
The cable pair started trading above 1.1825 but similarly to the euro then fell. After falling to the level of 1.1810, the GBP/USD pair rebounded and rose towards 1.1840. After breaking above 1.1845, the pound pair fell back towards 1.1830.
The pound reacted negatively to Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's more aggressive guidance during yesterday's appearance before the Senate Banking Committee.
UK OIS markets are now fully pricing in a 25 basis point (BoE) rate hike for the first time since February 27. While BoE expectations are hawkish, the policy divergence is more pronounced than ever with CME Group's FedWatch tool pointing to a 75% probability of a 50 bp rate hike at the next Fed meeting.
AUD/USD
The movement of the Australian pair is similar to that of the pound-euro pair. After falling to the level of 0.6570, the AUD/USD pair broke again and broke above 0.66, but did not hold and fell to the level of 0.6698.
The Australian dollar fell to a four-month low on Wednesday as diverging interest rate expectations between the US and Australia sent local yields to their biggest discount to government bonds in nearly four decades.
Source: finance.yahoo.com, investing.com
