Trump Tax Plan Faces Criticism, Dollar Pares Gains. The dollar rose for a third day, though it failed to hold an advance to the highest level in a month as President Trump’s tax plan faced resistance. Details of Trump’s tax proposal trickled out Wednesday, drawing immediate criticism from some lawmakers and reminding investors of the obstacles the plan faces. The greenback also benefited from weakness in the Canadian dollar, which dropped after the head of the Bank of Canada warned the central bank wasn’t on a preset rate path. The dollar’s index last traded at 93.414 after reaching a high of 93.607 on Wednesday, its strongest level since Aug.
The Euro Held Steady After Falling to Its More Than 1-Mth Low. The euro has fallen heavily against the US dollar over the past week, undermined by political uncertainty in Germany and renewed optimism that the US Federal Reserve will hike interest rates again before the year is out. European currency earlier approached 1.1700, falling to its lowest in about 5 weeks.
Canadian Weakens on BoC Caution. The Canadian dollar was trading near the session high of 1.2464, its highest level in almost four weeks, after BoC Governor Poloz said there is no “predetermined path for interest rates” and that the central bank will proceed “cautiously” as it assesses the performance of the economy. His speech — the first since the bank’s second consecutive rate increase — damped expectations for a third hike.
Havens Tick Up Fueled by Poloz Speech. The yen and Swiss franc modestly rebounded fueled by unwinds of Canadian dollar cross trades after Poloz spoke. The yen was trading around 112.76 as it rebounded from a session high of 113.26. Swiss franc dropped to 0.9694 after reaching its highest of 0.9768.
The NZ Dollar Held Steady at $0.7228. New Zealand’s central bank on Thursday kept interest rates unchanged at record lows of 1.75 per cent and firmly stuck to its neutral stance, against a backdrop of political uncertainty after an inconclusive national election. The New Zealand dollar slipped briefly to levels below $0.7200 after the central bank statement but later regained its footing.
Gold Rises from 1-Mth Lows. Gold rose on Thursday after falling to one-month lows on expectations of a rise in U.S. interest rates this year. Spot gold rose 0.3 percent to $1,284.36 per ounce after it revisited the previous session’s low of $1,280.72 an ounce, the lowest since Aug. 25.
Brent Slips from 2015 Peaks, U.S. Crude Up On Inventory Draw. Brent prices fell while U.S. crude rallied, after oil stockpiles in the world’s top consumer unexpectedly drew down with refiners coming back online following Hurricane Harvey last month. Brent futures traded at $57.71 a barrel, down from
Tuesday’s 26-month peak of $59.49. US West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) fetched $52.11 per barrel, just below Tuesday’s five-month high of $52.43.
Watch Out Today for:
06:35 am GMT: JPY Bank of Japan Governor Kuroda Speech
08:15 am GMT: GBP BOE’s Governor Carney speech
12:30 pm GMT: USD Core Personal Consumption Expenditures
13:30 pm GMT: USD Gross Domestic Product Annualized
