Weekly Currency Transfer Roundup – December 11, 2023

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Buckle up for a surprising twist in the currency tale as the US Dollar made a bit of a comeback this week. After dropping for three weeks, it’s up by 0.77% compared to other important currencies. On Friday, the Dollar reached its highest point in over two weeks, ending up at 104.263, which is quite a jump from where it started. So, what gave the Dollar this sudden boost?

Well, it turns out more jobs were added in the US last month than people expected – about 199,000 of them, which is good news for the economy. Also, there’s talk that the prices of things aren’t going up as fast as before, so folks are hoping that interest rates might be cut down, making borrowing money cheaper.

All this good news has made the Dollar stronger this week. Let’s take a look at how other currencies stacked up against the Dollar during the same period.

USD to EUR Weekly Overview

The USD to EUR exchange rate has been climbing up the ladder for yet another week. Building on last week’s increase of +0.51%, it has jumped an additional +1.12% this week. On Friday, the rate hit its highest since November 14th at 0.9289, ticking up by +0.29% in just one day. It’s not just the US dollar flexing its muscles— the Euro has been a bit under the weather too, which might be helping the dollar’s value go up when compared to the Euro.

On Tuesday, we heard from Isabel Schnabel of the ECB (that’s the European Central Bank). She hinted that the bank might hit the pause button on hiking up interest rates because inflation—a measure of how much prices rise—seems to be cooling off. Her words made people think that there could be a big rate cut coming, as much as 142 basis points, sometime next year. Now, a “basis point” is just a fancy term for one-hundredth of a percent, so that’s a potential 1.42% cut, which is pretty substantial.

On top of that, some recent numbers from Europe were a bit disappointing, with Germany’s Industrial Production slipping by 0.4%, more than what people were expecting. This put some extra weight on the Euro, dragging it down a bit. But it’s not all gloomy; the services sector in several European countries actually did better than anticipated, which stopped the Euro from dipping even lower against the dollar this week.

So, in simple terms, the dollar is gaining ground, the Euro is facing a few hurdles, and together, these are shaping up the exchange rates we’re seeing. For those of you looking to send dollars to Europe, this stronger dollar means you could get more bang for your buck right now, making it a potentially good time to transfer.

USD to GBP Market Dynamics

The USD to GBP exchange rate has had a good week, going up by +1.30%. This is a nice change because the rate had been going down for the last three weeks, losing a total of 3.85%. By the end of this week, on Friday, the rate closed at 0.79769, which means it went up by +0.37% just on that day.

From the UK, there wasn’t much news that could affect money matters this week, except for one update about the service industry doing a bit better than before. On the other side, the Bank of England has given a heads-up that the interest rates might go up, which could make things a bit tougher for everyone in the UK. This kind of talk can make the Pound weaker, which we saw this week because it lost some value compared to the Dollar.

If you’re thinking about sending money from the UK to the US, the current rates mean you’ll get fewer Dollars for your Pounds compared to before, so you might want to keep an eye on that.

USD to INR Weekly Outlook

The USD to INR exchange rate showed an upward trend this week, gaining +0.20%, a notable shift from last week’s -0.10% decline. The rate continued its upward trajectory for three days, closing on Friday at 83.4070 with a +0.10% increase.

This week’s movement comes in the backdrop of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decision to hold interest rates steady at 6.5% for the fifth time in a row. This decision was influenced by eased inflationary pressures.

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das highlighted that the current rate policy is effective and emphasized the MPC’s commitment to tightening monetary policy as needed to maintain inflation targets while supporting economic growth. Despite these reassurances, the Indian Rupee remained on the weaker side against the US Dollar throughout the week.

For those looking to exchange INR for USD or send money to India, the slight weakening of the Rupee means you might get more US dollars for your Rupees than you would have last week, making it a potentially favorable time for such transactions.

USD to SGD Key Movements

This week, the USD to SGD exchange rate experienced a welcome increase of +0.64%, breaking a three-week losing streak where it had dropped by -1.98%. By Friday’s close, the US dollar had climbed to 1.34216 against the Singaporean Dollar, marking a +0.22% gain for the day. A key factor in this upward movement was the US dollar’s strength, fueled by positive job reports from the US.

In Singapore, there wasn’t much in the way of big news or economic updates, which meant that the SGD didn’t see too much fluctuation over the week. The absence of significant local factors left the SGD more exposed to international market trends, particularly the momentum of the US dollar.

For those looking to exchange Singaporean Dollars for US dollars or send money to Singapore, this week’s shift suggests that your SGD might not go as far as it did before, so it’s worth keeping a close eye on these trends.

USD to AUD Weekly Performance

This week saw the USD to AUD exchange rate bounce back with a +1.49% gain, recovering from a -4.79% drop over the past three weeks. The rate closed on Friday at 1.5200, lifted by a robust US dollar and a Non-Farm Payroll report that hinted at economic strength.

The Aussie dollar struggled, influenced by Australia’s lower-than-expected GDP growth and a negative trade balance report. Additionally, disappointing economic updates from China, Australia’s significant trading partner, put further strain on the AUD. Moody’s recent downgrade of China’s outlook added to these pressures, contributing to the AUD’s weakness and the rise of the USD to AUD exchange rate this week.

For individuals looking to convert Aussie dollars to US dollars or send money to the USA, this rise in the exchange rate means your AUD could fetch more US dollars now, potentially making it a favorable time for such transactions.

USD to CAD Market Dynamics

This week, the US Dollar has seen a bit of a comeback against the Canadian Dollar, going up by +0.65%. This is quite a turnaround because for the last three weeks, the Dollar was on a bit of a losing streak. On Friday, though, the Dollar to ‘Loonie’ (that’s slang for the Canadian Dollar) rate dipped a little by -0.16%, but it still ended the week strong at 1.35767.

The Bank of Canada, which is like Canada’s version of a money manager, decided not to change interest rates this week, keeping them at around 5%. But there’s some talk that the Canadian economy isn’t growing as fast as people would like, which means the Bank might not raise interest rates any time soon. This has made the Loonie feel a bit of pressure, especially compared to the US Dollar.

Over in the oil world, there’s some drama because the countries that produce a lot of oil can’t quite agree on whether to produce less of it. Saudi Arabia thinks everyone should pump less oil to make prices go up, but not everyone’s on board with that idea. Even though they’ve said they’ll cut down on how much oil they’re getting out of the ground, some folks are skeptical about whether that’s actually going to happen.

Also, China’s not buying as much oil these days, which has made people worried about the demand for oil. Even with OPEC’s plans, oil prices stayed pretty low this week because there’s still plenty of it around, and that’s causing some stress about whether the oil countries’ plan will really work. Since Canada’s money is tied to things like oil prices, this has helped the US Dollar gain a bit more strength against the Canadian Dollar.

Conclusion

This week, the US Dollar rebounded, gaining against major currencies amid positive US job reports. The Euro and Pound felt the pressure, while the Indian Rupee and Australian Dollar showed resilience. These shifts offer pivotal moments for currency exchanges and overseas transfers. Stay updated with our latest insights to make informed decisions when converting currencies or sending money abroad. Keep an eye on the market to catch the best opportunities.

So, stay alert and enjoy the financial dance! Happy transferring!