United States Dollar Index holds gains near 101.50 on revival of hawkish Fed bets
- The US Dollar Index holds gains near 101.50 on the resurgence of Fed’s interest rate hike prospects.
- Surging oil prices have revived hawkish Fed bets.
- US President Trump warns of major military punishment to Iran and Houthis.
The US Dollar (USD) clings to the previous day’s gains in the Asian session on Friday, as surging oil prices due to intensified Middle East energy supply risks have revived Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate hike expectations.
At press time, the US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback’s value against six major currencies, trades firmly near an over three-week high at 101.50.
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 Swiss Franc.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.43% | 1.05% | 0.92% | 0.45% | -0.13% | 0.98% | 1.08% | |
| EUR | -0.43% | 0.63% | 0.43% | 0.02% | -0.53% | 0.57% | 0.64% | |
| GBP | -1.05% | -0.63% | -0.22% | -0.62% | -1.17% | -0.06% | 0.05% | |
| JPY | -0.92% | -0.43% | 0.22% | -0.38% | -0.99% | 0.00% | 0.25% | |
| CAD | -0.45% | -0.02% | 0.62% | 0.38% | -0.54% | 0.39% | 0.66% | |
| AUD | 0.13% | 0.53% | 1.17% | 0.99% | 0.54% | 1.10% | 1.23% | |
| NZD | -0.98% | -0.57% | 0.06% | -0.01% | -0.39% | -1.10% | 0.13% | |
| CHF | -1.08% | -0.64% | -0.05% | -0.25% | -0.66% | -1.23% | -0.13% |
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).
In the Asian trade, the WTI Oil price trades 0.5% lower to near $90.60, but is close to its over six-week high of $92.25 posted on Thursday. Higher oil prices boost inflation expectations, a scenario that discourages Fed officials from considering loose monetary conditions.
The closure of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, along with the Strait of Hormuz, has disrupted 27% of global energy supply.
Meanwhile, no signs of a diplomatic breakthrough between the US and Iran indicate that supply shocks could last long. On Thursday, US President Donald Trump said that Washington would hold Iran responsible for the Yemen-based Houthis’ actions and warned that Iran and its Houthi allies would both soon receive a “major military punishment”.
According to the CME FedWatch tool, the odds of the Fed delivering an interest rate hike in the policy meeting next week stand at 35.8%, significantly higher from 11.8% recorded last week. Fed’s interest rate hike prospects were similar to the current state a month ago, but they eased later after the release of the soft US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for June.
US Dollar FAQs
The US Dollar (USD) is the official currency of the United States of America, and the ‘de facto’ currency of a significant number of other countries where it is found in circulation alongside local notes. It is the most heavily traded currency in the world, accounting for over 88% of all global foreign exchange turnover, or an average of $6.6 trillion in transactions per day, according to data from 2022. Following the second world war, the USD took over from the British Pound as the world’s reserve currency. For most of its history, the US Dollar was backed by Gold, until the Bretton Woods Agreement in 1971 when the Gold Standard went away.
The most important single factor impacting on the value of the US Dollar is monetary policy, which is shaped by the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Fed has two mandates: to achieve price stability (control inflation) and foster full employment. Its primary tool to achieve these two goals is by adjusting interest rates. When prices are rising too quickly and inflation is above the Fed’s 2% target, the Fed will raise rates, which helps the USD value. When inflation falls below 2% or the Unemployment Rate is too high, the Fed may lower interest rates, which weighs on the Greenback.
In extreme situations, the Federal Reserve can also print more Dollars and enact 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 when credit has dried up because banks will not lend to each other (out of the fear of counterparty default). It is a last resort when simply lowering interest rates is unlikely to achieve the necessary result. It was the Fed’s weapon of choice to combat the credit crunch that occurred during the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. It involves the Fed printing more Dollars and using them to buy US government bonds predominantly from financial institutions. QE usually leads to a weaker US Dollar.
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse process whereby the Federal Reserve stops buying bonds from financial institutions and does not reinvest the principal from the bonds it holds maturing in new purchases. It is usually positive for the US Dollar.
