The US Dollar remained mostly stable on Wednesday as investors showed cautious optimism over the potential for a ceasefire in the Middle East, although mixed signals kept markets uneasy.
The Yen rebounded from this year’s low of 160.46 per Dollar, climbing back above the key 160 level that had sparked intervention concerns from Japanese authorities. Meanwhile, the Euro reached its highest level in over a week.
The Dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of currencies, was down 0.03% at 99.70 at the time of writing, marking a one-week low. The Euro rose 0.2% to $1.1574.
The Japanese Yen remained steady at 158.63 per Dollar, while Sterling gained 0.29% to $1.3261, Reuters reports.
The White House announced that President Trump will address the nation at 21:00 EDT on Wednesday to give an “important update on Iran.” Earlier, Trump suggested the US could conclude its military campaign against Iran within two to three weeks, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News that Washington might be approaching the “finish line” in the conflict.
At the same time, tensions appeared to escalate. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the coming days would be decisive in the Iran war and warned Tehran that the conflict would intensify if a deal was not reached.
The Dollar has gained from safe-haven demand since the conflict began in late February, while the US, as a net energy exporter, is relatively better equipped to cope with potential oil supply disruptions.
This week, attention will turn to Friday’s US jobs report for March, which is expected to show a gain of 60,000 jobs, according to the median forecast from economists surveyed by Reuters, following an unexpected loss of 92,000 jobs in February.
A significant weakening in the US labour market could rekindle expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts this year, which have mostly been discounted as rising oil prices from the Iran conflict fuel inflation concerns.
The Japanese Yen remained largely unchanged after the Bank of Japan’s quarterly Tankan survey indicated that business sentiment among large manufacturers improved in the three months to March, although firms expect conditions to deteriorate over the next quarter.
Elsewhere, the Australian Dollar gained 0.14% against USD, reaching $0.691, while New Zealand’s kiwi edged up 0.02% to $0.5746.