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Market sentiment sours as death tolls rise
Over the weekend, coronavirus continued to spread across the world and unfortunately death tolls surged. In reaction to this, stocks weakened while US Treasuries and bonds across Europe strengthened. US Congress worked on a $2 trillion stimulus package to support the US economy during these uncertain times. This morning, the Federal Reserve announced a second wave of stimulus including programs to ensure credit flows to corporations and state and local governments along with an unlimited appetite to buy bonds in an effort to keep borrowing costs low. Stock futures reacted quickly, the S&P rallying from down 3% to up 3% within minutes.
Economic Calendar
3/24 Tuesday
US New Home Sales
Eurozone Manufacturing PMI
3/25 Wednesday
UK CPI
US Durable Goods Orders
3/26 Thursday
Bank of England Bank Rate
US Initial Jobless Claim
US GDP
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FX Rates
March 23, 2020Rates are not real time. Rates are today's indicative mid-market rates as of time of publishing, which may vary. Please contact SVB for a current quote.
EUR/USD 1.0780 GBP/USD 1.1632 USD/CAD 1.4370 AUD/USD 0.5823 USD/JPY 110.32 USD/CNH 7.0957 USD/ILS 3.6706 USD/MXN 24.6635 USD/CHF 0.9816 USD/INR 76.2937
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USDThe US dollar erased earlier gains following the Fed announcement this morning. Markets are still on edge as the coronavirus spreads throughout the US. Lawmakers in Washington argue over a massive stimulus plan focused on rescuing the US economy. US congress is attempting to jolt the economy with a $2 trillion stimulus.GBPSterling continues to trade lower hitting a daily low of 1.1507 before trading back above 1.1600. GBP/USD fell over 5% last week.EUREUR/USD is up about 0.5% following the Fed’s announcement. The government in Germany signed a stimulus plan of EUR750 billion.CADCanada filed for 500,000 jobless claim last week, which represents 2.5% of the labor force. The loonie erased earlier losses after the Fed announced its massive stimulus plan and as crude oil rose.ASIA/PACIFIC
The New Zealand dollar fell against peers after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced a large-scale bond purchase program. NZD/USD was down as much as 1.9.
USD/JPY hit a day’s low of 109.67 before trading higher above 110. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stated that a postponement may be inevitable for the 2020 Olympics set to start in July in Tokyo.
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