Trading news

OCBC strategists Sim Moh Siong and Christopher Wong flag slight upside risks for USD/SGD as the Hormuz standoff weighs on risk appetite and imported cost pressures.

Commerzbank highlights that BSP raised its policy rate by 25bp to 4.50%, signalling the start of a new tightening cycle to anchor inflation expectations.

OCBC strategists Sim Moh Siong and Christopher Wong describe a technical rebound in USD/TWD driven by broader US Dollar (USD) strength and risk aversion linked to the US‑Iran ceasefire stalemate.

DBS Group Research economist Samuel Tse analyses recent steepening in Chinese Yuan (CNY) rates, linking it to a ceasefire between the United States (US) and Iran and stronger-than-expected Q1 growth in China.

USD/CHF dropped on Friday, yet it finished the week with gains of over 0.35%, trading at 0.7841, down 0.28%, as market participants grew confident that US-Iran talks could resume over the weekend to resolve the conflict.

Lloyd Chan at MUFG highlights that USD/IDR has broken to fresh highs, overshooting earlier expectations for near-term stabilization. The move is attributed more to domestic confidence and fiscal uncertainty than broad US Dollar (USD) strength.

Silver price edges up over 0.50% during Friday’s session, after bouncing off a daily low of $73.10. Speculation about a resumption of negotiations between Washington and Tehran is cheered by investors, which pushed US equities higher in tandem with the precious metals segment.

OCBC strategists Sim Moh Siong and Christopher Wong note the central bank of Philippines Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP) 25bp hike to 4.5% and guidance that further increases are possible as inflation forecasts are revised higher and second-round effects emerge.

TD Securities strategists, including Andrew Kelvin and colleagues, expect the Bank of Canada to keep the Overnight Rate at 2.25% through the April meeting and likely for the rest of 2026.

United States CFTC Oil NC Net Positions fell from previous 206.5K to 192.3K

Eurozone CFTC EUR NC Net Positions: €41.3K vs €26K

Japan CFTC JPY NC Net Positions down to ¥-94.5K from previous ¥-83.2K

United Kingdom CFTC GBP NC Net Positions rose from previous £-54.7K to £-52K

United States CFTC Gold NC Net Positions: $164K vs $162.5K

United States CFTC S&P 500 NC Net Positions climbed from previous $-115.8K to $-110.1K

Australia CFTC AUD NC Net Positions: $64.8K vs previous $65.1K

Rabobank’s Senior Macro Strategist Stefan Koopman expects the Bank of England’s (BoE) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to leave Bank Rate at 3.75% at the April meeting, maintaining its vigilant stance.

The US Dollar Index (DXY) is losing momentum near the 98.50 price zone and continues drifting lower from recent highs as markets unwind part of the recent US Dollar (USD) rally despite still strong United States (US) data and ongoing Middle East tensions.

Gold (XAU/USD) price recovers some ground on Friday, extending its gains above $4,700 as market sentiment remains upbeat amid headlines from Iran and the US pointing to a resumption of second-round talks aimed at ending the conflict. At the time of writing XAU/USD trades at $4,726, up 0.47%.

The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) gains traction against the US Dollar (USD) on Friday as the Greenback weakens amid renewed hopes for US–Iran talks after stalled negotiations.