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FOREX – U.S. Dollar Rises Amid Increasing Safe-Haven Demand

Published 04/01/2020, 12:56 AM
Updated 04/01/2020, 01:03 AM
© Reuters.

© Reuters.

By Gina Lee

Investing.com - The U.S dollar rose on Wednesday as traders continued to search for safe haven.

 

The US Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of other currencies, rose 0.04% to 99.135 by 12:13 AM ET (05:13 GMT).

Appetite for the safety of cash dollar continued to rise after reports in the U.S. said scientists now believe the virus could kill between 100,000 and 240,000 Americans despite social distancing measures.  

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, and Dr. Deborah L. Birx, who is coordinating the coronavirus response, displayed that grim projection at the White House on Tuesday, calling it “our real number.”

The virus has now killed more than 42,000 people and infected more than 851,000 in 205 countries. 

However, the gains of dollar were limited today as the Federal Reserve pumped more dollars into the system to calm markets.

The Fed allowed certain foreign central banks to exchange their U.S. Treasury securities for overnight dollar loans yesterday. It is also purchasing U.S. bonds at an unprecedented rate and implemented programs to support credit markets.

“I do not expect the dollar to rise to the level we saw last month, given that the Fed has been pumping dollars,” Minori Uchida, chief currency analyst at MUFG Bank, told CNBC.

“Against the yen, the dollar is likely to slip further,” he added.

Meanwhile, the USD/JPY pair was up 0.24% to 107.78 after the Bank of Japan's "tankan" corporate survey showed Japanese manufacturers turned pessimistic for the first time in seven years.

The AUD/USD pair slid 0.11% to 0.6128 and the NZD/USD pair gained 0.03% to 0.5954.

The USD/CNY pair gained 0.1% to 7.0880 as the Caixin manufacturing Purchasing Manager’s Index for March showed a slight economic expansion with a reading of 50.1. Analyst forecasts prepared by Investing.com predicted a reading of 45.5.

The GBP/USD pair gained 0.27% to 1.2384. 

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