US stocks experience a significant decline, the US dollar weakens sharply, and the Japanese yen strengthens on Bank of Japan policy expectations. Gold prices surge to a new all-time high. Our technical analysis covers key market reactions.
JPY and Gold extended rallies as US “exceptionalism” fades
US stocks slumped. All four major US stock indices ended Monday, 21 April session, deeply in the red. The S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Russell 2000 lost 2% or more.
The US dollar continued to tank in today’s Asian session, with the USD/JPY shedding -0.6% to print an intraday low of 139.57 at this time of writing, breaching below the 140 psychological level for the first time since September last year.
Today’s bout of Japanese yen strength has been reinforced by a Reuters media report, according to a source, highlighting that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) is likely to keep its interest rate hike signal intact despite Trump tariff risks after the conclusion of its upcoming two-day monetary policy decision meeting, ending 1 May.
After the conclusion of the first round of US-Japan trade talks last week, Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba told parliament yesterday, 21 April, that Japan will not concede to all US demands, citing the need to protect national interests, especially in the automobile and agricultural sectors.
Hence, the second round of trade negotiation talks between the US and Japan to be held before the end of April may not be smooth sailing.
Gold (XAU/USD) surged to another fresh record yesterday with a gain of 2.9%. In today’s Asia session, it extended its rally by 2% and printed another new intraday all-time high of US$3,495 at this time of writing.
The latest intraday technical analysis on US Wall Street 30, US Nas 100, Hong Kong 33, Japan 225, Germany 30, EUR/USD, GBP/USD, AUD/USD, USD/JPY, Gold (XAU/USD), and West Texas Oil can be found in our YouTube video above.
