The US Dollar rose on Tuesday after recovering from Monday\u2019s losses, following a US Supreme Court ruling against President Donald Trump\u2019s tariffs and a fresh set of levies announced last weekend. The ADP Employment Change four-week average increased to 12.8K from 11.5K.<\/p>\n
The US Dollar Index traded near 97.80, up over 0.10% after two sessions of declines. Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said rate cuts would depend on inflation returning to target.<\/p>\n
EUR\/USD traded near 1.1790 with the European Central Bank broadly on hold and inflation near 2%. GBP\/USD was near 1.3510, still higher on the day, after comments from Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey on potential easing.<\/p>\n
USD\/JPY climbed to 155.70 after reports that Japan\u2019s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi urged caution on further Bank of Japan rate rises. AUD\/USD was near 0.7060, steady as a firmer USD offset support from the Reserve Bank of Australia\u2019s stance.<\/p>\n
USD\/CAD hovered near 1.3700 after a three-week high, with Canada\u2019s Q4 GDP due Friday. Gold traded at $5,155, down over 1%, ending a four-day rise.<\/p>\n
Upcoming data: Australian January CPI (25 Feb); Tokyo February CPI (26 Feb); Swiss Q4 GDP, Germany February flash CPI and HICP, Canadian Q4 GDP, and US PPI (27 Feb).<\/p>\n
Looking back a year ago, we saw a market digesting a hawkish Federal Reserve, with officials signaling rates would stay high until inflation fell. Now, in February 2026, the Fed has already begun a cautious easing cycle, with the Fed Funds rate at 4.75% after two modest cuts. This shift means traders should look at options strategies that profit from expected volatility around future Fed meetings, rather than the one-way hawkish bets of 2025.<\/p>\n
The US Dollar Index, which was trading near 97.80 this time last year, now sits higher around 101.50, reflecting that the initial rate hikes had a lasting impact. However, with the European Central Bank and Bank of England also signaling potential cuts, the dollar\u2019s direction is less certain. Derivative traders should consider spreads between currency pairs, such as shorting EUR\/GBP, to trade on the relative speed of central bank easing.<\/p>\n
Last year, we saw extreme Yen weakness with USD\/JPY pushing 155.70 amid the Bank of Japan\u2019s reluctance to hike rates. The situation has since reversed, with the BoJ having delivered two rate hikes in late 2025, bringing the pair back toward a more stable 145.00 level. Traders should be cautious of being short the Yen, as any hint of further policy tightening from Tokyo could cause another sharp downward move in USD\/JPY.<\/p>\n
Gold presented a phenomenal opportunity last year, trading at an incredible $5,155 per ounce as a hedge against stubborn inflation and geopolitical risk. While the price has since corrected to around $3,800, the underlying support remains strong as lower interest rates make holding the non-yielding asset more attractive. We see continued demand from central banks, which added over 950 tonnes to their reserves in 2025, continuing the trend of diversification seen in previous years.<\/p>\n
Create your live VT Markets account<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0start trading<\/a>\u00a0now. <\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Dollar rebounds as Supreme Court blocks Trump tariffs; ADP improves; major pairs steady; gold slips; key inflation, GDP, PPI ahead.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":16959,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43567","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-live-updates"],"acf":{"acf_article_selection_author":null},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\t\t