For 60 years, the US dollar maintains its position as a reserve monetary unit in the world economy, its share in sales with major currencies is approximately 50%. In March 1973, when the Bretton Woods system ceased to exist, replacing the economic system based on the “gold standard,” the US dollar index USDX was introduced. The objective of this index is to map the USD relationship to a basket of key currencies of the world economy, which include: the common European currency - the euro (EUR), the British pound sterling (GBP), the Canadian...
The US currency at the beginning of the new trading week rose to the Australian and New Zealand dollars, which are considered among investors as indicators of global risk appetites. The reason was the rather weak fundamental data on the Chinese economy, which heightened fears of a sharp slowdown in the growth of the country's economy. Chinese exports in December decreased by 4.4 percent in annual turnover — a maximum of 2 years, indicating a continued decrease in the planet’s 2nd largest economy. The data had an impact on the Australian and...
I welcome all readers who take the time to read my story on how I started a micro lending business in the Democratic Republic of Congo, my home. I reside in Kongo Central’s capital of Matadi from where I now operate my business venture together with four partners. Micro lending is a very important source of funding especially in more remote locations across Africa. There are hundreds of millions un-banked individuals who rely on their governments for survival, but with a small capital infusion their life could change completely. There...
The dollar fell versus its major peers on Friday, as investors grew increasingly confident that the U.S. Federal Reserve may hit the pause button on monetary tightening this year. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated on Thursday the U.S. central bank has the ability to be patient on monetary policy given that inflation remains stable. Markets are now pricing in no further rate hikes by the Fed this year. Fed Vice Chair Richard Clarida also struck a dovish tone, underscoring the central bank’s willingness to remain patient on the issue of...
The sharp increase in oil prices and oil price volatility over the past decade has coincided with a closer link between oil prices and asset prices, including exchange rates. There is a growing literature analyzing the link between oil prices and currency movements, showing that currency values of commodity exporters contain information about future commodity price movements, while commodity prices also have predictive power for commodity currencies. When a country’s principal export is oil or a commodity, its currency exchange rate...
