USD Recovering

The US Dollar is extending gains on Friday, with the Dollar index on course to end the week around 1.5% higher, as of writing. The rebound comes on the back of a fortnight of heavy selling in USD as traders digested the latest drop in inflation and paired back their Fed rate hike calls accordingly. This week, however, rising US yields have helped pull the greenback up off the ground.  There is a case for attributing this move simply to a little uncertainty ahead of the FOMC next week. With the Fed still widely expected to hike rates by a further .25%, the focus will be on the guidance and outlook offered alongside the rate move. Current price action suggests maybe some players believe the USD sell off might be a little premature.

Tech Stocks Falling

USD has also been helped this week by the pullback in stocks. Tech stocks in particular have come under pressure this week with the Nasdaq correcting sharply from YTD highs. A post-earnings drop in Tesla following CEO Musk’s warning of ‘turbulent times’ seems to have blunted sentiment, feeding into safe-haven demand for USD. The largest global chipmaker, TSMC also posted its first quarterly loss since 2019 and warned of lower sales for the year as a whole.

Technical Views

Nasdaq

The index has fallen around 3% from highs and is curtly testing the top of the broken bull channel which is holding as support for now. While above here, the 16010.4 level remains the key focus. Below here, however, support at 15177.5 comes into view, a break of which opens the way for a much deeper correction.