Here is what you need to know on Tuesday, June 7:
With the benchmark 10-year US Treasury bond yield rising above 3% on Monday, the greenback gathered strength against its rivals at the start of the week. The US Dollar Index extended its rebound early Tuesday and climbed to its highest level in two weeks. Sentix Investor Confidence report from the euro area will be looked upon for fresh impetus during the first half of the day. Later in the session, April Goods Trade Balance and Consumer Credit Change data will be featured in the US economic docket.
US stock index futures are down between 0.5% and 0.8% in the early European session, pointing to a risk-averse market atmosphere.
During the Asian trading hours on Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) announced that it hiked its policy rate by 50 basis points to 0.85% following its policy meeting. Commenting on the policy decision, RBA Governor Phillip Lowe noted that inflation in Australia has increased significantly. “The board expects to take further steps in the process of normalising monetary conditions in Australia over the months ahead,” Lowe added.
Although AUD/USD spiked to a daily high of 0.7243 with the initial reaction to the RBA’s bigger-than-expected rate increase, it erased a large portion of its daily gains and returned to the 0.7200 area in the European morning.
GBP/USD managed to close in positive territory on Monday but came under renewed bearish pressure on Tuesday. The pair was last seen trading at its lowest level since May 19 below 1.2500. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has survived the no-confidence vote on Monday but 148 MPs voted against him.
EUR/USD fluctuates in a narrow band below 1.0700 on Tuesday after having posted small losses on Monday. The data published by Germany’s Destatis revealed that Factory Orders contracted by 2.7% on a monthly basis in April, missing the market expectation for an increase of 0.5% by a wide margin.
Pressured by rising US Treasury bond yields, gold edged lower at the start of the week and closed below $1,840. XAU/USD stages a modest rebound on Tuesday but continues to trade below $1,850.
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda reiterated earlier in the day that a weak Japanese yen would be beneficial for the economy if fluctuations in exchange rates were not too sharp. USD/JPY extended its rally and reached its highest level in more than 20 years above 132.70.
Following Monday’s recovery, Bitcoin turned south on Tuesday and was last seen losing nearly 6% on the day at $29,500. Ethereum lost its momentum before testing $2,000 and fell below $1,800 early Tuesday.