Trade War

Dollar Gains as Iran War Escalates and Brent Oil Reclaims 100

Dollar Gains as Iran War Escalates and Brent Oil Reclaims 100

Dollar advanced broadly today as risk aversion swept through global markets. Asian equities declined while investors moved back toward safe-haven assets amid growing doubts about the narrative that the Iran war is nearing an end. Instead, markets are back pricing the possibility of prolonged energy scarcity and fragmentation in global trade. The shift in sentiment […]

Relief Rally Emerges as US Steps In to Stabilize Oil Flows

Relief Rally Emerges as US Steps In to Stabilize Oil Flows

Global markets are attempting to recover from the shock of a brutal Asian session as trading moves into Europe. Major European indices have managed to stage a modest rebound, helped in part by strong policy signaling from the US aimed at stabilizing energy markets. However, the recovery remains fragile. The underlying risks tied to the

Dollar Slides as Asian Equities Scale Records; Risk Appetite Shrugs Off Tariff and Iran Tensions

Dollar Slides as Asian Equities Scale Records; Risk Appetite Shrugs Off Tariff and Iran Tensions

Dollar fell broadly again today, pressured by renewed risk appetite as global equities pushed higher. The greenback struggled to attract safe-haven demand despite lingering geopolitical and trade uncertainties, with investors favoring higher-beta currencies instead. Asian markets set the tone. Both Nikkei 225 and KOSPI hit fresh record highs, tracking the tech-driven rebound in the US

Dollar Bears the Brunt While Tariff Chaos Fails to Rattle Asia

Dollar Bears the Brunt While Tariff Chaos Fails to Rattle Asia

While US tariff chaos dominated headlines, its market impact has been surprisingly contained. Equities in Asia are brushing aside the latest escalation. In South Korea, the Kospi extended gains for a third consecutive session to fresh highs, signaling confidence that trade rhetoric has not yet translated into real economic disruption. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index

Tariffs, Fed and Iran: Three Tests, One Resilient Market

Tariffs, Fed and Iran: Three Tests, One Resilient Market

Global markets were forced to face three major developments last week, each capable on its own of destabilizing sentiment. Instead of buckling under the weight of legal, monetary, and geopolitical shocks, investors responded with surprising composure. At the end of the week came a landmark legal decision in the US that struck at the core

Dollar Softness Continues, CPI Does Little to Alter Fed Pricing

Dollar Softness Continues, CPI Does Little to Alter Fed Pricing

Forex markets remained relatively steady following the January US CPI release, with the slightly softer-than-expected headline reading failing to trigger major repositioning. The moderation in inflation was largely driven by lower energy prices, while underlying pressures showed only gradual improvement. The data did little to materially alter Fed expectations. A March hold is effectively locked

Yen Stands Tall as Risk-Off Tone Strengthens With Metal Crash, Tech Rout

Yen Stands Tall as Risk-Off Tone Strengthens With Metal Crash, Tech Rout

Risk aversion reasserted itself across global markets overnight as NASDAQ led US equities sharply lower once again, with AI disruption fears resurfacing as the primary catalyst. Asian markets followed and traded broadly lower. The vulnerability in equities was mirrored in fixed income markets. Safe-haven demand pushed US Treasuries higher, sending the 10-year yield tumbling and

Yen Reversal Case Builds as Nikkei Rally Looks Overextended

Yen Reversal Case Builds as Nikkei Rally Looks Overextended

Risk sentiment was mixed in Asia today as Japan returned from holiday with Nikkei extending its post-election surge and briefly breaching the 58,000 mark for the first time on record. The breakout, however, lacked follow-through, with the index quickly trimming gains and hinting that near-term momentum may be stretched. Elsewhere in the region, trading was

Blowout Payrolls Challenge Dovish Narrative, Dollar Rebounds With Uneven Momentum

Blowout Payrolls Challenge Dovish Narrative, Dollar Rebounds With Uneven Momentum

January’s highly anticipated US non-farm payroll report delivered a decisive upside surprise, with job growth nearly doubling expectations and marking the strongest monthly gain since mid-2025. The data decisively push back against recent concerns that the labor market was deteriorating rapidly. Rather than rolling over, hiring appears to be regaining momentum at the start of

Risk-On Asia and Hawkish RBA Propel Aussie Higher

Risk-On Asia and Hawkish RBA Propel Aussie Higher

Australian Dollar surged broadly in Asia session, drawing fresh strength from a hawkish RBA rate hike that reinforced expectations of further tightening later this year. The move gave the Aussie an extra tailwind on top of an already constructive regional backdrop. Risk appetite in Asia has been firm, with the latest boost to sentiment coming

Dollar Reprieve Fades as Risk Aversion Reasserts, Swiss Franc Jumps

Dollar Reprieve Fades as Risk Aversion Reasserts, Swiss Franc Jumps

The brief reprieve for Dollar has already faded. As markets move into the US session, the greenback is once again under broad selling pressure, undoing the tentative stabilization seen earlier and returning to a defensive footing. There is little in the way of fresh fundamental catalysts today. Instead, the renewed pressure appears to reflect positioning

Dollar Stays on the Defensive as Shutdown Risk Returns to the Fore

Dollar Stays on the Defensive as Shutdown Risk Returns to the Fore

Dollar remains generally weak as markets move into the early US session, even though outright selling pressure has eased slightly. The slowdown, however, looks more like consolidation than recovery, with the greenback still exposed to fresh political and policy risks. That vulnerability follows an already bruising period marked by renewed transatlantic trade tensions and the

Yen Roars on Takaichi’s Blunt Warnings, Dollar Selling Intensifies

Yen Roars on Takaichi’s Blunt Warnings, Dollar Selling Intensifies

Yen once again took center stage, staging a broad-based rally that gathered pace through the Asian session. USD/JPY dived below 154, a sharp reversal from last week’s run toward 160 — a level widely perceived by markets as Japan’s informal line in the sand. The move gained traction as Japanese assets reacted in tandem. Nikkei

Policy Chaos Takes Its Toll; Dollar Long-Term Downtrend Takes Shape

Policy Chaos Takes Its Toll; Dollar Long-Term Downtrend Takes Shape

Relentless geopolitics has continued to haunt global markets since the turn of the year, and last week offered little respite. What has changed, however, is not the scale of the headlines but the market’s tolerance for them. Investors appear increasingly fatigued by policy uncertainty and abrupt reversals from the US, where confidence has become harder

Relief Rally Continues, But Trust Gap Remains; Dollar Stays Soft

Relief Rally Continues, But Trust Gap Remains; Dollar Stays Soft

Risk-on sentiment returned to global equity markets today as tensions surrounding Greenland appeared to de-escalate further. Stocks across regions pushed higher, reflecting relief that the immediate geopolitical shock has been contained, at least for now. The shift followed fresh comments from US President Donald Trump, who elaborated on the previously announced Greenland framework while attending

Markets Catch Their Breath, Trumps Speech in Davos Now Key

Markets Catch Their Breath, Trumps Speech in Davos Now Key

Global markets appeared to stabilize somewhat today after the sharp U.S. selloff overnight, which saw the DOW suffer its worst one-day loss since October. That said, the underlying source of stress has not faded. Greenland-related tensions remain unresolved, with no visible path toward de-escalation. The current stabilization looks more like position-squaring, rather than renewed confidence.

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