- USD/CHF edged lower for the second straight day amid some heavy USD selling bias.
- Reduced Fed rate hike bets, sliding US bond yields continued weighing on the buck.
- Fresh COVID-19 jitters benefitted the safe-haven CHF and added to the weaker tone.
The USD/CHF pair maintained its offered tone through the mid-European session and was last seen hovering near three-day lows, around mid-0.9100s.
The pair added to the previous day’s modest losses and remained depressed for the second consecutive session on Friday amid the heavily offered tone surrounding the US dollar. Expectations that the Fed will keep interest rates near zero levels for a longer period continued weighing on the greenback. Apart from this, a fresh leg down in the US Treasury bond yields further acted as a headwind for the buck and dragged it back closer to the multi-week lows set earlier this week.
On the other hand, renewed fears about another dangerous wave of coronavirus infections in some countries continued weighing on investors’ sentiment. This was evident from a weaker tone around the equity markets, which drove some haven flows towards the Swiss franc and exerted some additional downward pressure on the USD/CHF pair. That said, the lack of any strong follow-through selling warrants some caution before positioning for any further depreciating move.
From a technical perspective, the USD/CHF pair’s inability to capitalize on a modest bounce from the lowest level since early March suggests that the bearish pressure might still be far from being over. Hence, any meaningful recovery attempt might still be seen as a selling opportunity. The pair remains vulnerable to prolong its recent pullback from multi-month tops touched earlier this month and aim to test sub-0.9100 levels, support marked by the very important 200-day SMA.
Market participants now look forward to the US economic docket, highlighting the release of the flash version of manufacturing and services PMI for April. The data will offer fresh insight into how the economy is performing, which along with the US bond yields will influence the USD price dynamics. Apart from this, the broader market risk sentiment might also provide some impetus and allow traders to grab some short-term opportunities around the USD/CHF pair.
Technical levels to watch
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