US Dollar extends losses to seven-month low as all eyes turn to Jackson Hole
- The US Dollar trades substantially softer, touching a seven-month low, at the start of the week.
- The Greenback continues eking out losses after Friday’s turmoil.
- The US Dollar index trades on the brink of entering the 101-region and might face more downside.
The US Dollar (USD) trades substantially softer this Monday, touching its lowest level since mid-January, mainly driven by a more than 1% appreciation of the Japanese Yen (JPY) against the Greenback. . The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) reported on Friday that hedge funds are net long on the Japanese Yen, and Asian and European investors seem to follow through on Monday. . As the Japanese Yen accounts for 13.6% of the US Dollar Index (DXY), the rise weighs on the index’s performance this Monday, pushing it to lows not seen in roughly seven months.
On the economic data front, a rather soft start for the data this week where all eyes will be on Wyoming at the end of the week for the annual US Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole Symposium. The event will have the crème-de-la-crème of central bankers speaking, including Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, and is known for being the occasion for the Fed to signal a change in monetary policy outside of its scheduled meetings. In the run-up to that event, several headlines will come out from other central bankers, and the US Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) data on Thursday will give the latest insights about the state of the economy.
Daily digest market movers: Fast forward?
- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued on Friday its weekly holding of speculative and non-speculative positions in currency futures markets. The report revealed that hedge funds are net long JPY for the first time since 2021.
- This week kicks off with comments from Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, who delivers welcoming remarks at the 2024 Summer Workshop on Money, Banking, Payments, and Finance in Washington, D.C at 13:15 GMT.
- The US Treasury is allocating a short-term 3-month and 6-month bill at 15:30 GMT.
- Asian equity markets are mixed, with Chinese indices up nearly 1%, while Japanese equities are sliding over 1% lower. European equities are also looking for direction while US futures are trading flat.
- The CME Fedwatch Tool shows a 72% chance of a 25 basis points (bps) interest rate cut by the Fed in September against a 28% chance for a 50 bps cut. Another 25 bps cut (if September is a 25 bps cut) is expected in November by 53.7%, while there is a 39.2% chance that rates will be 75 bps below the current levels and a 7.1% probability of rates being 100 basis points lower.
- The US 10-year benchmark rate trades at 3.87% and is looking for direction after last week’s dip.
Economic Indicator
Fed's Chair Powell speech
Jerome H. Powell took office as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System on May 25, 2012, to fill an unexpired term. On November 2, 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Powell to serve as the next Chairman of the Federal Reserve. Powell assumed office as Chair on February 5, 2018.
Read more.Next release: Fri Aug 23, 2024 14:00
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Source: Federal Reserve
US Dollar Index Technical Analysis: Who did what now?
The US Dollar Index (DXY) looks very bleak, and chances of recovery seem low. With this new information from the CFTC, traders have to ask themselves where they see the DXY heading to, considering that hedge funds will not pile into a currency on the back of some feeble belief.
Hedge funds are always in it to sit on their positions until their earnings projection is met. Seeing that this is just the beginning, and with more and more hedge funds and traders possibly joining this trade, the US Dollar could be set to bleed further. This could mean more downside, and then that 100-level might be showing up quicker than expected.
Defining pivotal levels becomes very important in order to avoid any “dead-cat bounces,” in which traders pile in too quickly in a trade and get caught on the wrong side of the fence once the course reverses. First up is 103.18, a level that traders were unable to hold last week. Next up, a heavy resistance level is at 103.99-104.00, and inches above there is the 200-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) at 104.07.
On the downside, the first immediate support comes up at the 101.90 level if prices breach below 102.00. Levels not seen since early January are popping up, and even a fresh yearly low could come into play once the DXY dips below 101.30 (low from January 2). The low of December 28 at 100.62 will be the ultimate level to look out for.
US Dollar Index: Daily Chart
US Dollar FAQs
The US Dollar (USD) is the official currency of the United States of America, and the ‘de facto’ currency of a significant number of other countries where it is found in circulation alongside local notes. It is the most heavily traded currency in the world, accounting for over 88% of all global foreign exchange turnover, or an average of $6.6 trillion in transactions per day, according to data from 2022. Following the second world war, the USD took over from the British Pound as the world’s reserve currency. For most of its history, the US Dollar was backed by Gold, until the Bretton Woods Agreement in 1971 when the Gold Standard went away.
The most important single factor impacting on the value of the US Dollar is monetary policy, which is shaped by the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Fed has two mandates: to achieve price stability (control inflation) and foster full employment. Its primary tool to achieve these two goals is by adjusting interest rates. When prices are rising too quickly and inflation is above the Fed’s 2% target, the Fed will raise rates, which helps the USD value. When inflation falls below 2% or the Unemployment Rate is too high, the Fed may lower interest rates, which weighs on the Greenback.
In extreme situations, the Federal Reserve can also print more Dollars and enact quantitative easing (QE). QE is the process by which the Fed substantially increases the flow of credit in a stuck financial system. It is a non-standard policy measure used when credit has dried up because banks will not lend to each other (out of the fear of counterparty default). It is a last resort when simply lowering interest rates is unlikely to achieve the necessary result. It was the Fed’s weapon of choice to combat the credit crunch that occurred during the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. It involves the Fed printing more Dollars and using them to buy US government bonds predominantly from financial institutions. QE usually leads to a weaker US Dollar.
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse process whereby the Federal Reserve stops buying bonds from financial institutions and does not reinvest the principal from the bonds it holds maturing in new purchases. It is usually positive for the US Dollar.
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