Dollar ended the week as the worst-performing major currency, largely weighed down by strong risk-on sentiment that took hold after President Donald Trump’s first week in office. Investors had anticipated more aggressive trade measures from the new administration, but Trump instead struck a relatively softer tone on tariffs, leading to improved risk appetite in equities and other growth-sensitive assets. Meanwhile, the extended consolidation in US Treasury yields offered little help to the greenback. The delayed implementation of tariffs has been a major factor buoying market optimism. In the absence of immediate trade disruptions, stocks continued their robust rally, while Treasury yields remained in a rangebound consolidation phase. Until Trump shows concrete follow-through on his tariff threats, the dominant trends of rising equity prices and a softer Dollar appear likely to remain intact. Among the other major currencies, Yen finished the week as the second worst performer. Briefly, anticipation of a BoJ rate hike lent the yen some support, but once the hike was finally delivered, Yen returned to a downbeat mode as risk-seeking flows dominated. Swiss Franc was also soft, lacking safe-haven demand in this upbeat environment. But Loonie was the third worst performer, dragged down by specific concerns that Trump’s tariff policies would target key Canadian exports. On the other side of the spectrum, identifying a clear winner among Euro, Sterling, Aussie, and Kiwi is a bit difficult. Sterling may have a slight edge, helped by reduced US trade threats and encouraging PMI reports. Euro is similarly supported by easing tariff concerns and improving economic indicators. At the same time, Aussie and Kiwi have found a boost from Trump’s softer stance on China, coupled with a favorable risk environment. It may take another week or two for these four to sort out their relative strength, but for the moment, they continue to benefit from Dollar weakness and positive sentiment across global markets.... |
