- Indian Rupee (INR) rises after 8 days of losses
- The EU and India agree a free trade deal
- The US Dollar (USD) is falling versus major peers to multi-year lows
- US consumer confidence falls
The US dollar-to-Indian rupee (USD/INR) exchange rate is falling after 8ays of gains. The pair rose 004% in the previous session, settling on Tuesday at 91.71. At 21:30 UTC on Thursday, the pair is falling -0.24% at 91.49.
The Indian rupee is pushing higher across the board after India and the EU announced “the mother of all trade deals”.
The European Union and India announced a landmark free trade deal, which comes after almost 2 decades of on-and-off negotiations, as both sides look to deepen ties amid tensions with the US.
The deal will allow free trade of goods between the bloc of 27 European States and the world’s most populous country. Together, these two regions account for almost 25% of global GDP and represent a market of 2 billion people.
The US Dollar is falling across the board. The US Dollar Index, which measures the US dollar against a basket of major currencies, is down 0.82% to 96.26, a multi-year low.
U.S. dollar continues to fall on Tuesday, weighed down by speculation that the US may coordinate an FX intervention with Japan to support the yen. This would dovetail with President Trump’s view that a weak dollar is good for the US economy.
Other factors weighing on the dollar include concerns about the potential for another U.S. government shutdown, as Democratic Senate leaders refuse to support a funding bill unless there are changes at the Department of Homeland Security.
Trump’s revived threats of trade tariffs on South Korea and Canada are adding to the “Sell America” trade in the FX markets.
Meanwhile, data also pulled on the greenback as the Conference Board consumer confidence index fell to its lowest level since 2014 at 84.5, down from 94.2 in December, well below expectations of 90.
