· Dollar wobbles after Fed pushes back against rate hike speculation
The U.S. dollar was on the defensive on Thursday after the Federal Reserve signaled it was in no hurry to raise interest rates through all of 2023 even as it saw a swift recovery in the world’s largest economy.
The dollar’s index against six major currencies stood at 91.488. It had hit a two-week low of 91.340 after remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell dampened speculation the stronger economic outlook could propel the central bank to wind back its stimulus.
The euro eased to $1.19655, but was hovering close to its one-week high of $1.19900 after rallying 0.6% on Wednesday.
“What the Fed said is a very market-friendly outcome. It’s negative for the dollar, good for inflation expectations,” said Chris Weston, the head of research at Pepperstone Markets, a foreign exchange broker based in Melbourne.
“Ultimately, the market was kind of positioned for something a little bit more hawkish, and maybe the fact that those rate hikes are pushed out to 2023 has been enough to cause some decent dollar selling.”
The 10-year U.S. Treasuries yield edged back up to about 1.6710% and was nearing a more-than-one-year high.
Against the yen, the dollar slipped 0.2% to as low as 108.620 yen after a Nikkei report said the Bank of Japan (BOJ) is expected to slightly widen an implicit band at which it allows long-term interest rates to move around its 0% target.
A recent Reuters poll showed two thirds of Japanese firms had expected the BOJ to curb rises in long-term interest rates and keep them steady ahead of the central bank’s review this week on how it will make its stimulus policy more sustainable.
The British pound traded at $1.3946, having gained about 0.5% overnight.
The Bank of England is expected to keep its benchmark Bank Rate at a historic low of 0.1% and its bond-buying program unchanged at 895 billion pounds later in the day.
The Australian dollar rose to a two-week high of $0.78350, whereas its New Zealand counterpart briefly lost momentum after the country posted a surprise contraction in GDP in the final three months of last year.
The kiwi dollar last traded at $0.7241.
Bitcoin held firm at $58,954.64, having bounced from Tuesday’s one-week low of $53,221.
· U.N. body raises global economic growth forecast for 2021 to 4.7%
The global economy is set to grow by 4.7% this year thanks to a stronger-than-expected recovery in the United States, a report by the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said on Thursday, revising up its previous forecast of 4.3%.
The upwards revision from its previous forecast made last September factors in an expected boost in U.S. consumer spending on the back of progress distributing COVID-19 vaccines and a vast stimulus package, the report said.
· Britain says lumps in global vaccine supply an issue
Britain said on Thursday that there were lumps and bumps in the global vaccine supply chain that was causing some issues and scolded the European Union for threatening to slap a ban on vaccine exports.
· European Commission unveils Digital Green Certificate to ease travel within EU, EEA
The European Commission is proposing to the European Parliament the creation of a Digital Green Certificate that will prove a person has been vaccinated against COVID-19, has recovered from it, or has received a negative test result.
he European Commission said the Digital Green Certificate would "facilitate safe free movement inside the EU during the COVID-19 pandemic" in a March 17 press release. "It will be available, free of charge, in digital or paper format. It will include a QR code to ensure security and authenticity of the certificate," the EC added.
This Digital Green Certificate will apply not only to European Union countries but also to Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.
· France set to announce new Covid-19 measures, lockdown possible for Paris region
The French government will impose tougher restrictions for some regions including Paris from this weekend to counter the accelerating spread of COVID-19 infections, spokesman Gabriel Attal said on Wednesday after a cabinet meeting.
· China regulators held talks with Alibaba, Tencent, nine others on 'deepfake' tech
Chinese regulators recently summoned 11 domestic technology companies including Alibaba Group, Tencent and ByteDance for talks on use of ‘deepfake’ technologies on their content platforms, stepping up scrutiny of the sector.
China’s cyberspace administrator said in a statement on Thursday that it and the public security ministry met with the companies to talk about “security assessments” and potential problems with deepfakes and audio social apps. Kuaishou Technology and Xiaomi Corp also attended the meeting, it said.
· Blinken: US considers pressure, diplomatic options on North Korea
After meeting with South Korean officials in Seoul, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States will complete its North Korea policy review in coming weeks, and that both pressure and diplomatic options are on the table.
· Taiwan has completed checks on its first batch of AstraZeneca Plc COVID-19 vaccines and the first shots may start being administered from Monday, Health Minister Chen Shih-chung says.
Taiwan's first vaccines - 117,000 doses of the AstraZeneca shot - arrived on the island earlier this month, though they have yet to start being administered.
· India's richest state suffers surge in COVID-19 cases
New coronavirus infections in India rose by the most in more than three months as a second wave of the epidemic gathered momentum, with Maharashtra, the country’s richest state, accounting for two-thirds of the latest daily tally.
· Australia Unemployment Drops to 5.8% as Recovery Strengthens
Australia’s jobless rate tumbled in February as rising sentiment from a vaccine rollout combined with fiscal and monetary stimulus accelerated the economy’s recovery and returned employment to pre-pandemic levels.
Unemployment dropped to 5.8% from a revised 6.3% in January, data from the statistics bureau showed Thursday in Sydney. Employment jumped by 88,700 in February, compared with an expected 30,000 gain. The participation rate was unchanged at 66.1%, in line with expectations.
· Myanmar faces growing isolation as military tightens grip
Myanmar faced growing isolation on Thursday with increasingly limited internet services and its last private newspaper ceasing publication as the military built its case against ousted elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
While the security forces have focused on stamping out dissent in Yangon and other cities, small demonstrations have erupted elsewhere day after day.
· Oil's decline continues as inventories rise, demand recovery clouded
Oil prices declined for a fifth consecutive session on Thursday falling around 1% after official data showed a further increase in U.S. crude and fuel inventories, while the ever-present pandemic clouded the prospects for a demand recovery.
Brent crude was down 74 cents, or 1.1%, at $67.26 a barrel by 0745 GMT after dropping 0.6% on Wednesday. U.S. oil was also down 65 cents, or 1%, at $63.95 a barrel, having fallen 0.3% the previous session. Both contracts are down around 3% over the last five days of declines.
Reference: CNBC, Reuters
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