US Dollar Strengthens After Upbeat Durable Goods Figures
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the US Dollar (USD) against a basket of six major currencies, was just a few cents shy of 104.50 and consolidated on Wednesday after the release of US Durable Goods Orders data for February.
On the one hand, the DXY saw some selling pressure from the US-brokered Black Sea ceasefire deal, where Ukraine agreed to commit and Russia backed down and demanded the lifting of all sanctions on banks and agricultural companies.
On the other hand, buying pressure came from comments from US President Donald Trump, who said that Copper tariffs would come in a few weeks, much sooner than the market had anticipated.
On the economic data front, February Durable Goods Orders pushed the Greenback higher. Expectations were quite bearish, with a 1% contraction for the forecasted figure compared to a 3.2% increase the previous month. On the other hand, the surprising positive number and an upward revision of the previous reading helped the US Dollar appreciate. On the Federal Reserve (Fed) front, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkarai and St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem are due to speak on Wednesday.
Source: FXStreet
