Forex Today: Another Black Monday

Here is what you need to know on Tuesday, March 17th:

• It was another Black Monday for Wall Street, with the DJIA down roughly 13%. The Nasdaq shed 12.32% and the S&P 11.98%. The slump came despite the US Federal Reserve announced late Sunday a 100 bps rate cut to 0.0% and massive stimulus of up to  $700B. Other central banks also announced monetary easing but could not convince investors.
• US Treasury yields trimmed most of their Friday’s gains amid dominant risk-off. The yield on the benchmark 10-year note settled at 0.73%.
• The EUR/USD pair closed around 1.1170, retaining part of its gains despite risk-aversion. The dollar suffered from an awful NY Empire State Manufacturing Index.
• The GBP/USD pair flirted with 1.2200 and settled not far above it, as the UK is in no rush to combat coronavirus.
• Commodity-linked currencies plummeted, as crude oil prices resumed their declines while spot gold pierced temporary the 1,500 threshold.
• The coronavirus outbreak remains out of control in Europe. Worldwide, countries announced lockdown and quarantine measures to try slowing the spread and prevent health-care systems from collapsing. Economic downturn already here.
• Cryptocurrencies edged lower.