US Dollar, Japanese Yen, Gold, Dow Jones, Coronavirus – Asia Pacific Market Open
- Haven-linked US Dollar and anti-risk Japanese Yen outperformed
- Anti-fiat gold prices soared as equities declined across the globe
- USD may be readying to extend rally, AUD/USD eyeing wage data
US Dollar, Japanese Yen and Gold Prices Rise as Risk Aversion Sinks Global Equities
The haven-linked US Dollar and anti-risk Japanese Yen were some of the best-performing major currencies on Tuesday as risk aversion plagued global markets. This followed a downgrade in revenue forecasts from Apple due to the outbreak of the coronavirus, raising concerns about global growth. On the flip side of the spectrum, the sentiment-linked Australian Dollar and similarly-behaving New Zealand Dollar weakened.
Anti-fiat Gold prices soared, climbing 1.32% and closing at the highest since March 2013. U.S. front-end government bond yields tumbled, reflecting an uptick in demand for safety. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones closed -0.29% and -0.56% to the downside. This is as the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ended the day little changed. The Euro continued its decline, as expected following bearish technical signals.
Wednesday’s Asia Pacific Trading Session – Australian Dollar, Japanese Yen
Asia Pacific bourses may follow Wall Street’s pessimistic lead on Wednesday with China having just reported total Wuhan virus deaths surpassing 2k. That may continue supporting the Japanese Yen while depressing the Australian Dollar. The latter will also be eyeing local wage price data, which may surprise higher given the tendency of Australian data to beat economists’ expectations as of late. That may boost AUD/USD.
| Change in | Longs | Shorts | OI |
| Daily | -3% | -1% | -2% |
| Weekly | 29% | -4% | 11% |
US Dollar Technical Analysis
The US Dollar may be readying to accelerate its advance. My majors-based US Dollar index – which averages the Greenback against EUR, JPY, GBP and AUD – has prolonged its push above key falling resistance from August. Yet, negative RSI divergence is present which hints fading upside momentum. That may precede a turn lower towards rising support from early January. The latter is maintaining the near-term rise.
Majors-Based US Dollar Index
Chart Created Using TradingView
--- Written by Daniel Dubrovsky, Currency Analyst for DailyFX.com
To contact Daniel, use the comments section below or @ddubrovskyFX on Twitter
