
Dollar steadies after rally, focus shifts to US-China trade talks
The dollar remained stable against major currencies as optimism from a strong U.S. jobs report was tempered by anticipation for U.S.-China trade talks in London.
Dollar remained stable against major currencies before US-China trade discussions in London. Trade talks are crucial due to China's deflation and US business concerns. US delegation includes Scott Bessent, Howard Lutnick, and Jamieson Greer. Japan's economy contracted less than expected. Investors await US inflation data for May to assess trade policy impact.
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The dollar held steady against all major currencies on Monday, as exuberance over an upbeat U.S. employment report gave way to caution ahead of pivotal U.S.-China trade talks set to take place in London later in the day.The talks come at a crucial time for both economies, with China grappling with deflation and trade uncertainty dampening sentiment among U.S. businesses and consumers, prompting investors to reassess the dollar's safe-haven status. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent , Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer are expected to represent the U.S. at the trade talks, while vice premier He Lifeng would likely be present with the Chinese delegation."A deal to keep talking might be better than nothing, but unless we see a concrete breakthrough, the impact on sentiment is likely to remain muted," said Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets.Friday's upbeat U.S. jobs report yielded some relief for investors following other bleak economic data last week.The dollar advanced against major peers after the employment report, which cut weekly declines in the dollar index by more than half. However, it is still down by more than 8.6% for the year.On Monday, the yen firmed 0.10% at 144.750 per dollar, as data showed Japan's economy contracted at a slower-than-expected pace in the January-March period.The Swiss franc was steady at 0.8221 per dollar by 0041 GMT. The euro was last flat at $1.1399, while the sterling fetched $1.3535.The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six others, was steady at 99.169. The yield on 10-year Treasury notes was flat in early Asia trading, after a more than 10 basis points jump on Friday.New Zealand's dollar last bought $0.6020, while the Australian dollar inched up 0.1% at $0.65 in light volumes as markets were closed for a public holiday.An inflation report out of the U.S. for the month of May will be in the spotlight later in the week as investors and Federal Reserve policymakers look for evidence on the damage trade restrictive policies have had on the economy.Fed officials are in a blackout period ahead of their policy meeting next week, but they have signalled that they are in no rush to cut interest rates and signs of better-than-feared economic resilience are likely to further cement their stance.Interest rate futures indicate that investors are anticipating the central bank may cut borrowing costs by 25 basis points, with the earliest move expected in October this year, according to data compiled by LSEG."May is the first month where the impact of Trump's 10% universal tariff on imports ex-USMCA is expected to show. The Fed will want a few months of inflation data in order to judge the tariff impact and most importantly, its persistence," analysts at ANZ Bank said.Elsewhere, China's offshore yuan was last at 7.187 per dollar ahead of inflation and trade data.
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Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Deal to get US-China trade truce back on track is done, says Trump
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"Our deal with China is done, subject to final approval with President Xi and me," Trump said on Truth Social. "Full magnets, and any necessary rare earths, will be supplied, up front, by China. Likewise, we will provide to China what was agreed to, including Chinese students using our colleges and universities (which has always been good with me!). We are getting a total of 55per cent tariffs, China is getting 10per cent ." A White House official said the 55per cent represents the sum of a baseline 10per cent "reciprocal" tariff Trump has imposed on goods imported from nearly all US trading partners; 20per cent on all Chinese imports because of punitive measures Trump has imposed on China, Mexico and Canada, associated with his accusation that the three facilitate the flow of the opioid fentanyl into the US ; and pre-existing 25per cent levies on imports from China that were put in place during Trump's first term in the White House. 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The two sides left Geneva with fundamentally different views of the terms of that agreement and needed to be more specific on required actions, said Josh Lipsky , senior director of the Atlantic Council's GeoEconomics Center in Washington. "They are back to square one, but that's much better than square zero," Lipsky said. It was not immediately clear from Trump's comments where things stood regarding the timeline for a more comprehensive deal that was reached last month in Geneva, a deadline set at that time for August 10. William James in London, and Sachin Ravikumar; Ethan Wang, Shi Bu, Yuhan Lin and Alessandro Diviggiano in Beijing, Caroline Valetkevitch in New York; Writing by David Lawder, Kate Holton and Liz Lee; Editing by Lincoln Feast, Paul Simao, Jamie Freed and Leslie Adler)


Mint
an hour ago
- Mint
Australian shares flat as mining losses counter banks, energy boost
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Economic Times
an hour ago
- Economic Times
S&P 500 ends lower; traders focus on Middle East tension and await details on trade deal
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