The Dollar dropped to all-time lows against the Euro and a basket of currencies on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke signaled further interest rate cuts in the fight to avert a US recession.
Risks of a contraction in the world’s largest economy were again heightened by a report showing new US home sales fell in January to the lowest rate in nearly 13 years and housing inventories swelled, despite falling prices.
Bernanke’s reiteration that growth risks rather than inflation were the main focus for the US central bank left investors anticipating another 50bp cut next mon (more…)
The Dollar fell to an all-time low versus the Euro for a third straight day on Thursday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned some small US banks could fail and flagged further interest rate cuts. He also said the central bank was in a more difficult position now to respond to a slowing economy than it was in 2001. Lower interest rates will further erode the appeal of Dollar-denominated securities at a time when the European Central Bank is not seen easing monetary policy any time soon and countries like Australia are raising rates.
The dollar has been under pressure since the Fed (more…)
The Yen fell broadly on Monday as euphoria over the US bond insurance sector boosted the appeal of stocks and other risky assets, helping to underpin high-yielding currencies like the New Zealand dollar. UsdJpy raced to a session high of 108.22 before retreating in late trade to around 108.09, still up 0.87%. The New Zealand dollar, which has the highest interest rates among industrialized countries at 8.25%, rose to levels not seen since it was floated 23 years ago. NzdJpy advanced 1.44% to 87.95.
AudJpy rose 1.29% to 100.30, while GbpJpy climbed 0.84% to 212.54. The Yen often suffers in time (more…)
Federal Reserve Vice-Chairman Donald Kohn announced that the housing market troubles were not over and expects to not see an economic recovery for now. The Euro hit $1.5050, the highest point since the currency?s inception in 1999. Gold hit $964 an ounce in early trading today. (more…)
