Dollar Extends Losses; Commodity Currencies Rally

USD

The dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies finished sharply lower at 97.06 and extended losses during today's Asian session towards a two-week low of 96.95. The February factory orders came in at -0.5% as expected to confirm a drop in the economic activity. On the other hand, the rally in commodity prices supported commodity currencies against the United States Dollar. The USDCAD tumbled to a three-week low of 1.3293, the AUDUSD rallied to a two-week high of $0.7149, and the NZDUSD surged to $0.6755. Market participants await the release of February JOLTs Job Openings to grasp a further insight about the labor market.

Metals

Gold prices edged higher as the dollar weakened, but the bullion surrendered gains as Treasury yields surged. The price of a gold ounce climbed to a two-week high of $1303 and retreated to settle at $1297. The silver ounce jumped to a high of $15.28, and palladium recovered to $1390.

Oil                                                                                    

Oil prices extended gains supported by the US sanctions on Iran and Venezuela along with OPEC-led supply cuts. The Trump administration imposed new sanctions on Venezuela and is planning more sanctions on Iran. On the other hand, Saudi Oil Minister Khalid Al-Falih confirmed that OPEC+ is committed to reducing supply. He added, that the planned April meeting has been canceled, and will be replaced with a meeting in May where OPEC+ will discuss whether to extend cuts beyond summer 2019. The West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose to a fresh five-month high of $64.74, and Brent futures soared to $71.31. Market participants await the weekly crude oil stock by the American Petroleum Institute ahead of tomorrow's release of the official numbers by the US Energy Information Administration.

Major Economic Events

 
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