US Indices Hold Gains; Dollar Slips ahead of Fed Decision

Equities

Major US stock index futures continued to trade near a seven-week peak ahead of a busy trading day. Investors are optimistic about the prospects of reopening the economy and bringing life back to normal. On the other hand, they are looking forward to the first reading of the first-quarter GDP figures, in addition to the Fed's monetary policy meeting outcome. The market widely expects the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates unchanged, but participants will be looking for clues about their future path. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose to 24313, the S&P500 rallied to 2904, and Nasdaq futures advanced to 8858 recovering from yesterday's drop.

USD

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, extended its move lower trading at a low of 99.62 on better risk appetite. The slowing spread of the coronavirus encouraged investors to go after riskier assets. However, the awaited preliminary reading for the first-quarter GDP could be a key catalyst for the next move. Moreover, market participants are awaiting clarity on the future path of interest rates, until when the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates near zero. The EURUSD rose to $1.0856, the GBPUSD rallied to 1.2484, and the risk-sensitive AUDUSD advanced to a fresh seven-week high of $0.6546.

Gold

Gold prices eased for the third consecutive day but settled well off the lows. The price of a gold ounce tumbled to a one-week low of $1691, but buyers jumped in, driving prices back to $1708 into the close. Meanwhile, the price of a silver ounce continued to trade in a tight range above $15, and palladium futures rebounded to $1974.

Oil

Oil prices recovered from losses incurred early yesterday and settled on slight gains. Investors are looking for opportunities in low oil prices supported by the fact that OPEC+ recent deal will go into play on Friday and the prospects of reopening the economy in Europe and the United States. On the other hand, the American Petroleum Institute reported a buildup of 10 million barrels in inventories, the least in weeks. Market participants are looking forward to the official figures from the US Energy Information Administration as we approach record levels of inventory. The West Texas Intermediate crude June delivery rose to $14.38 after trading as low as $10.07, and Brent oil June delivery ascended to $21.39.

Major Economic Events

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