French Elections Revives Risk Appetite

USD
The Greenback settled near its lowest level vs. a basket of major currencies after Emmanuel Macron won the first round of the French presidential election. The U.S. dollar was sold-off after U.S. Senate called for an emergency meeting regarding N. Korea amid threats of nuclear war, as the geopolitical tension between the USA and the North Korea over North Korea's nuclear has dominated once again.

• The dollar index .DXY, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, fell as much as 1%, to settle at 98.90, in anticipation of the U.S. Consumer Confidence index for April.

EUR
Elsewhere, Euro failed to settle at $1.09 and traded in a limited range vs. USD, despite a strong data of the German Ifo Business Climate Index. Technically, the common currency could trade sideways vs. the Greenback in anticipation of the second round of votes  on the 7^th of May.

Gold
Gold prices pared its gains and declined as much as 1% yesterday after Emmanuel Macron won the first round of the French presidential election. The yellow metal settled above $1,270 in anticipation of the U.S. economic growth data for the first quarter.

Oil
Oil prices declined yesterday amid doubts over whether OPEC will extend output cuts until the end of the year. Meanwhile, Russia is being cagey about extending the cuts as it could back to its highest rate in 30 years if the OPEC and non-OPEC producers do not extend a six-month supply reduction deal. And U.S. crude fell to $49, in anticipation of U.S. inventory data.

The most important economic events:

• USD Consumer Confidence (APR): (GMT 14:00) – Important – Forecast (122.5) – Previous (125.6).

Disclaimer
The prices and news mentioned in this outlook are absolutely no guarantee of future market performance and do not represent the view of ICM Capital Limited. Financial markets can move in either direction causing profits to be made or complete losses to be incurred by the trader. Each trader must decide for themselves what their risk appetite is and ensure that correct risk management procedures are in place before placing any trades.