Forex traders have been waiting for central bank data all week, and it is in. The data has offered little in the way of changes for the US dollar, although the greenback has a slight edge. The US dollar index is a little bit higher today.
Central bank announcements are rolling in, and that is providing some help for the US dollar on the currency market, although most pairs are rangebound. It appears that the Fed has a plan for exiting quantitative easing, but the plan is likely to be executed in stages, so there isn’t a mad rush to the dollar.
The Bank of Japan struck a relatively dovish tone. However, yen weakness is likely to remain; even with a plan to raise sales tax to counter-balance some of the inflation from a debt load that has exceeded one quadrillion yen, the BOJ is still promising stimulus as needed.
The dollar is down against the pound, as the Bank of England shows signs of ending its asset program if data keeps beating forecasts. Things are better in the eurozone, but there are enough troubles for the euro that the 17-nation currency is down versus the dollar.
At 12:07 GMT EUR/USD is down to 1.3203 from the open at 1.3207. GBP/USD is up to 1.5646 from the open at 1.5625. USD/JPY is up to 99.9400 from the open at 99.7450.
If you have any questions, comments or opinions regarding the US Dollar,
feel free to post them using the commentary form below.