USD Steady, Tariff Risks & Geneva Lead
The US dollar held steady on Thursday after weakening, as risk sentiment improved following Nvidia's solid performance report. At 3:00 AM ET (8:00 AM GMT), the Dollar Index (DXY) was up slightly at around 97.650, although on a weekly basis it was still trending down around 0.2%.
An initial boost came from Nvidia reporting better-than-expected January quarter sales and projecting current-quarter revenue above market expectations. Consequently, demand for safe-haven assets—including the dollar—eased slightly as risk appetite improved, although the global market response remained measured.
However, market participants' primary focus has now shifted to US tariff policy following the Supreme Court's ruling (February 20) invalidating Trump's "emergency tariffs." USTR Jamieson Greer said tariffs for some countries could potentially rise to 15% or more from the newly imposed 10% global tariff, although specific countries/trading partners have not yet been disclosed. This uncertainty has kept USD volatility alive.
On the geopolitical front, markets are also closely monitoring the upcoming US-Iran meeting in Geneva, which will focus on nuclear negotiations. The potential for escalation remains a major wild card: if tensions escalate, the dollar could again receive broad-based support as a safe haven, especially given the relatively quiet US data calendar.
In Europe, EUR/USD corrected slightly to around 1.1798, while markets weighed the release of consumer confidence and inflation figures—which were deemed insufficient to alter expectations that the ECB would likely maintain its current policy stance. In the UK, GBP/USD weakened to 1.3523 despite a CBI survey showing improving service sentiment, indicating that sterling would struggle to lead without a stronger catalyst.
In Asia, USD/JPY fell to around 156.01 after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda confirmed that the central bank would closely monitor data at its March (18-19) and April (27-28) meetings, leaving open the possibility of an interest rate hike if inflation and wage trends remain strong—supporting a stronger yen.
Meanwhile, USD/CNY weakened to around 6.8392 (nearing a multi-month high for the yuan) ahead of the National People's Congress annual meeting, which has fueled speculation of policy support and stimulus signals. In the Antipodean region, AUD/USD edged down to 0.7114 and NZD/USD to 0.5988, following the market's anticipation of US tariff headlines.
Source: Newsmaker.id
