Dollar Falls amid Expectations of a dovish Fed this week

USD

The dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies lost 0.8% on Friday to settle near a two-week low of 95.81. Market participants await the outcome of the first Federal Open Market Committee meeting this year, and they widely expect the Fed to adopt a dovish tone as the recent economic data raised the chances of a slowdown. The USDCAD tumbled 1% to a two-week low of 1.3215, and the EURUSD gained 0.9% to a ten-day high of $1.1405.

GBP   

The British Pound finished higher for the sixth consecutive week on hopes that Theresa May's plan B could win the acceptance of the parliament. The recent Brexit developments lowered the chances of a no-deal Brexit and favored better scenarios which provided support to the sterling. The House of Commons will hold a second Brexit deal vote on Tuesday. The GBPUSD climbed to $1.3217, the highest since mid-October, and the EURGBP declined to 0.8617, the lowest since May 2017.

Metals

Metals finished last week on a strong note as the dollar weakened. The gold ounce jumped 1.7% on Friday to a seven-month high of $1303, the silver ounce added 2.8% to close a two-week high of $15.73, and palladium advanced 3% to $1367.

Oil

Oil prices settled higher for the second consecutive day on expectations that the United States could impose sanctions on Venezuela's crude oil exports. The West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded at a high of $53.91, and the Brent futures rose to a high of $61.91.

Major Economic Events

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