· The dollar was little changed against a basket of currencies in thin holiday-impacted trading on Monday, while a jump in the price of oil on news that Washington will end sanctions waivers for major Iranian oil importers boosted the Canadian dollar and the Russian rouble.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major currencies, was 0.19% lower at 97.28. The index hit a two-week high of 97.485 late last week.
Against the Japanese yen the dollar was about flat, while the euro was 0.10% higher against the greenback.
· Financial markets in Australia, Hong Kong and many major countries in Europe are closed on Monday for the Easter holiday. Currency trading continues globally but volume is expected to be light.
· Traders will be keenly watching the U.S. GDP report due Friday for further clues on the health of the U.S. economy, analysts said.
· Brent crude topped $74 a barrel on Monday, the highest since November, as the White House said U.S. President Donald Trump has decided to eliminate all waivers issued to eight economies that had allowed them to buy Iranian oil without facing U.S. sanctions.
With the jump in the price of oil, one of Canadas major exports, the Canadian dollar rose 0.36% against its U.S. counterpart.
· The rouble hit its highest level against the euro since last April and a one month-peak versus the dollar on Monday, driven by the jump in oil prices and local month-end taxes that boost demand for the Russian currency.
· Sterling was a shade lower at $1.2982, dipping below the $1.30 handle and nearly 0.4 percent off a two-month low of $1.2945 hit last month. The currency is now at its least volatile in years as investors await a breakthrough in Britain’s European Union divorce process.
· Sales of previously owned homes in the US fell by the most in more than three years in March, signalling the housing market is still trying to regain its footing after the prior year’s slowdown.
Existing home sales, which account for the bulk of home sales in the US, fell 4.9 per cent in March from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.21m, according to data on Monday from the National Association of Realtors. That was the biggest monthly drop since November 2015.
That compared with expectations for a 3.8 per cent drop to a rate of 5.3m, according to a Thomson Reuters survey.
· Oil prices surged about 3% at midday on Monday, hitting fresh 2019 highs, after the Trump administration announced that all oil buyers will have to end imports from Iran in just over a week or be subject to U.S. sanctions.
The administration said the State Department will cease granting sanctions waivers to any country still importing Iranian crude or condensate, an ultra-light form of crude oil, after May 2.
Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, settled $2.07 higher at $74.04, rising 2.9% for its best closing price since Oct. 31, 2018. Brent rose as high as $74.52 per barrel around midday, sailing past last week’s 2019 intraday peak at $72.27.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled $1.70 higher at $65.70, surging 2.7% to a nearly six-month closing high. WTI earlier rose as high as $65.92, the strongest level since Oct. 31, 2018. WTI had been trading sideways for about two weeks after peaking at $64.79 earlier in the month.
· North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will visit Russia for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, North Korean state media confirmed.
With his Russia visit, North Korea’s Kim is seen working to build up foreign support for his economic development plans, since the breakdown of the second U.S.-North Korea summit in Hanoi in February led to stalled talks with Washington on the sanctions relief Pyongyang had sought.
Reference: CNBC, Reuters, Financial Times
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