Analysis: Currencies

April US payrolls growth slows before full tariff impact felt

U.S. job growth slowed marginally in April, but the outlook for the labor market is increasingly darkening as President Donald Trump's aggressive tariff policy heightens economic uncertainty. ...

Exclusive-Europe to hand billions in frozen Russian cash to Western investors, sources say

BRUSSELS -Euroclear plans to seize and redistribute about 3 billion euros of Russia's funds that are frozen at the Belgian clearing firm after Moscow grabbed investor cash in Russia, according to...

Sterling edges up against weaker dollar ahead of key U.S. data

Sterling edged up against a weaker dollar on Friday, staying near a three-year high scaled earlier in the week as the U.S. currency lost ground over U.S. President Donald Trump's announced sweeping...

BOJ sees window for rate hikes narrowing but not closed yet

TOKYO -The Bank of Japan's rate-hike cycle is facing its biggest test since Governor Kazuo Ueda took the helm two years ago, with U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs rapidly narrowing the window...

Rupee hits six-month peak before retreating on likely central bank intervention

The Indian rupee soared past 84 per U.S. dollar to touch a near six-month peak on Friday before reversing course on the back of likely dollar buying intervention by the central bank, via state-run...

Japan Q1 GDP likely contracted on soft domestic demand, import surge

Japan's economy probably contracted for the first time in a year in the first quarter, weighed down by softer domestic demand and imports outperforming exports, a Reuters poll showed, as U.S....

Rupee rally unabated; analysts abandon bearish outlook

MUMBAI -The Indian rupee rose sharply in early trading on Friday to climb past 84 per U.S. dollar for the first time since October 2024, driven by heavy dollar sales from foreign banks and strength...

US dollar retreats, but off lows, after solid jobs report

The U.S. dollar fell on Friday, but trimmed losses against the euro and yen, after data showed the world's largest economy added more new jobs than expected last month, reflecting a labor market that...

US blacklist on China is riddled with errors, outdated details

Doris Au, a seller of door locks and hardware in Hong Kong for 25 years, received a letter from her bank, DBS Group, last June stating that her business account would be closed. The bank gave little...

Canadian factory PMI hits near five-year low on tariff uncertainty

TORONTO -Canadian manufacturing activity contracted in April at the steepest rate since shortly after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic as the uncertain nature of U.S. trade policy weighed on...

Sterling steady against dollar and euro, manufacturing activity shrinks

LONDON -Britain's pound was steady against the dollar on Thursday but remained close to a three-year high reached earlier in the week as investors shunned the U.S. currency in the wake of U.S....

Yen slides with JGB yields after BOJ cuts growth forecasts

TOKYO -The Bank of Japan cut its growth and inflation forecasts on Thursday while refraining from raising interest rates against a backdrop of uncertainty created by Washington's aggressive and...

Russia hikes 2025 deficit forecast threefold due to low oil price risks

MOSCOW -Russia's finance ministry raised the 2025 budget deficit estimate to 1.7% of gross domestic product on Wednesday from 0.5% after reducing the energy revenues forecast by 24% due to...

Russia sees 2025 economic growth at 1.8% in 'trade war' scenario

MOSCOW -International trade wars, triggered by the United States' protectionist policies, pose a key risk to the Russian economy, according to the country's Economy Ministry, which published its...

Bank of Canada governing council mulled cutting rates again in April

The Bank of Canada discussed whether to cut rates again earlier this month but decided not to given the uncertainty caused by U.S. tariffs, according to minutes of discussions released on Wednesday. ...

Russian GDP up 1.4% in March, economy ministry says

MOSCOW -Russia's gross domestic product grew by 1.4% in March year-on-year after expanding by 0.7% in February, the economy ministry said on Wednesday. For the first quarter this year,...

Stocks log worst 100 day start since Nixon as Trump injects semi-permanent uncertainty

NEW YORK -President Donald Trump's first 100 days in office delivered the worst start for stocks since former President Richard Nixon's second term in 1973, stoked volatility across markets and...

US consumer confidence plunges in April

U.S. consumer confidence slumped to a nearly five-year low in April as growing concerns over tariffs weighed on the economic outlook. The Conference Board said on Tuesday its consumer...

China ramps up global yuan push, seizing on retreating dollar

SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE -As Chinese President Xi Jinping toured Southeast Asia this month to forge closer ties against higher U.S. tariffs, the People's Bank of China was seizing a moment of confusion and...