US dollar indexIt hit a five-year high on Wednesday, as worries about sluggish economic growth after Russia halted gas supplies to parts of Europe promptedEURIt fell below the $1.06 mark for the first time since 2017.
ICE, which tracks the dollar against a basket of major currencies, late in New York US dollar index (DXY) rose 0.65% to 102.97, the highest intraday high of 103.28, the highest since January 2017, and the lowest of 102.22.
CME Group’s FedWatch tool showed traders expect the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by two yards at next week’s meeting, as well as in June and July, more aggressively than other central banks around the world.
Fears of stunted global growth also boosted demand for the dollar as Europe struggled to avoid a massive economic blow from the Russia-Ukrainian war and China clamped down on the spread of the virus.
Russian energy giant Gazprom announced on Wednesday that it would stop shipping gas to Poland and Bulgaria after the two countries did not follow previous Russian rules to pay for gas in rubles.
Dominic Bunning, head of European foreign exchange research at HSBC, believes that this will put upward pressure on natural gas prices in Europe, which may drag down the European economy and increase inflation.
EURIt fell 0.75% to $1.0557 against the dollar, its lowest level since March 2017.EURIt has fallen about 4.6% so far this month and is on track for its biggest monthly drop in more than seven years.
Jane Foley, head of foreign exchange strategy at Rabobank, said worries about China’s lockdown have expandedEURDownside risk against USD. Market analysts believe that, as Europe’s largest trading partner, China’s economic slowdown has also affected the economic growth prospects of European countries.
Germany on Wednesday revised down its economic growth forecast for this year to 2.2 percent from 3.6 percent at the end of January, while French consumer confidence slumped to its lowest level in nearly 3-1/2 years in April, a sharper-than-expected decline.
A stronger dollar also weighsJapanese Yenrebounding trend, the dollar againstJapanese Yenup 0.96% to 128.41 Japanese Yenthe Bank of Japan (BOJ) ended its two-day policy meeting on Thursday, and investors will be watching whether there is a shift in the central bank’s yield curve control policy.
GBPIt was down 0.21% at $1.2543, continuing to hover at a 21-month low.
Britain earlier reported a sharp drop in retail sales in April, citing a squeeze on household spending as soaring living costs such as gas, electricity and fuel.
AUDIt edged up 0.07% to $0.7124, hitting its lowest level since late February on Wednesday before reversing losses.
Markets expect the Reserve Bank of Australia to raise interest rates as soon as next week’s May policy meeting after core inflation soared to a 20-year high in Q1.
As of Thursday (28th) Taiwan time about 6:00 Price:
- US dollar indexReport 102.9868. +0.6383%
- EURExchange rate against the US dollar (EUR/USD) at 1 EURAgainst $1.0555. -0.7895%
- GBPExchange rate against the US dollar (GBP/USD) at 1 GBPAgainst $1.2541. -0.2545%
- AUDExchange rate against the US dollar (AUD/USD) at 1 AUDAgainst $0.7121. +0.0421%
- dollar againstCanadian Dollars (USD/CAD) exchange rate at 1.2815 per US dollar Canadian Dollars。-0.0468%
- dollar againstJapanese Yen (USD/JPY) exchange rate at 128.45 USD Japanese Yen。+0.9906%