The sanctuary of the US Dollar, is the story of market direction, in the last week or so. Flows to the safety of the US currency is sought to park risk in turbulent times. The bond and equity markets have settled, since the Middle East energy crises has calmed. Peace negotiations continue, allowing energy supplies to resume, while oil has tumbled all the way down to US$70/barrel. Nerves remain and this is reflected in currency moves, with the EUR falling to 1.1350, while the GBP slumped to 1.3150.The surge in the reserve has damaged commodity currencies, with the AUD crashing below 0.6900, while the NZD has crumbled to 0.5640. Australian inflation data for May was released yesterday, which was surprisingly weak, contracting for the month but remaining well above target levels. A look at Employment data today will be followed closely.
