Forex Today: US Dollar consolidates gains as focus shifts to Fed policy announcements
Here is what you need to know on Wednesday, January 29:
The US Dollar (USD) struggles to build on Tuesday's gains as investors move to the sidelines ahead of the Federal Reserve's (Fed) highly-anticipated monetary policy announcements. The US economic docket will also feature Goods Trade Balance data for December. Additionally, the Bank of Canada (BoC) will release its interest rate decision in the early trading hours of the American session on Wednesday.
US Dollar PRICE This week
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies this week. US Dollar was the strongest against the Australian Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.60% | 0.17% | -0.29% | 0.27% | 1.16% | 0.75% | -0.11% | |
| EUR | -0.60% | -0.36% | -0.74% | -0.19% | 0.56% | 0.27% | -0.60% | |
| GBP | -0.17% | 0.36% | -0.70% | 0.18% | 0.93% | 0.65% | -0.24% | |
| JPY | 0.29% | 0.74% | 0.70% | 0.61% | 1.64% | 1.29% | 0.33% | |
| CAD | -0.27% | 0.19% | -0.18% | -0.61% | 0.69% | 0.48% | -0.41% | |
| AUD | -1.16% | -0.56% | -0.93% | -1.64% | -0.69% | -0.25% | -1.11% | |
| NZD | -0.75% | -0.27% | -0.65% | -1.29% | -0.48% | 0.25% | -1.10% | |
| CHF | 0.11% | 0.60% | 0.24% | -0.33% | 0.41% | 1.11% | 1.10% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the US Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent USD (base)/JPY (quote).
The USD Index gained traction and rose nearly 0.5% on Tuesday as the uncertainty surrounding US President Donald Trump's tariff policy forced markets to adopt a cautious stance. Early Wednesday, the USD Index stays in a consolidation phase slightly below 108.00. The Fed is widely anticipated to keep its monetary policy settings unchanged following the first meeting of the year. After the Fed releases its policy statement, Chairman Jerome Powell will respond to questions in a press conference starting at 19:30 GMT.
USD/CAD holds steady at around 1.4400 after posting small gains on Tuesday. The BoC is expected to lower the policy rate by 25 basis points (bps) to 3%.
During the Asian trading hours on Wednesday, the data from Australia showed that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 2.4% on a yearly basis in the fourth quarter. This reading followed the 2.8% increase recorded in the third quarter and came in below the market expectation of 2.5%. Assessing the inflation report, Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the worst of the inflation challenge is well and truly behind them and added that the soft landing they have been planning for is looking more and more likely. AUD/USD stays under modest bearish pressure in the European morning and trades below 0.6250.
According to the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes, some policymakers preferred to raise the interest rate to 0.5%, while the majority voted to keep rates unchanged at 0.25%, citing uncertainties in wage growth and global economic conditions. USD/JPY showed no immediate reaction to this publication and was last seen trading near 155.20.
EUR/USD turned south and lost more than 0.5% on Tuesday. The pair holds steady at around 1.0430 to begin the European session on Wednesday. The European Central Bank will release Private Loans data for December later in the session.
GBP/USD closed in negative territory on Tuesday and snapped a three-day winning streak. The pair trades marginally higher on the day above 1.2450 early Wednesday.
Following the bearish opening to the week, Gold regained its traction and rose more than 0.8% on Tuesday. XAU/USD struggles to preserve its bullish momentum but holds comfortably above $2,750.
Fed FAQs
Monetary policy in the US is shaped by the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Fed has two mandates: to achieve price stability and foster full employment. Its primary tool to achieve these goals is by adjusting interest rates. When prices are rising too quickly and inflation is above the Fed’s 2% target, it raises interest rates, increasing borrowing costs throughout the economy. This results in a stronger US Dollar (USD) as it makes the US a more attractive place for international investors to park their money. When inflation falls below 2% or the Unemployment Rate is too high, the Fed may lower interest rates to encourage borrowing, which weighs on the Greenback.
The Federal Reserve (Fed) holds eight policy meetings a year, where the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) assesses economic conditions and makes monetary policy decisions. The FOMC is attended by twelve Fed officials – the seven members of the Board of Governors, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and four of the remaining eleven regional Reserve Bank presidents, who serve one-year terms on a rotating basis.
In extreme situations, the Federal Reserve may resort to a policy named Quantitative Easing (QE). QE is the process by which the Fed substantially increases the flow of credit in a stuck financial system. It is a non-standard policy measure used during crises or when inflation is extremely low. It was the Fed’s weapon of choice during the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. It involves the Fed printing more Dollars and using them to buy high grade bonds from financial institutions. QE usually weakens the US Dollar.
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse process of QE, whereby the Federal Reserve stops buying bonds from financial institutions and does not reinvest the principal from the bonds it holds maturing, to purchase new bonds. It is usually positive for the value of the US Dollar.