The USD index at fresh multi-year tops around 112.00
EURUSD
The USD index came off two-decade tops seen around 111.80 on Thursday. However, the greenback regained the upside bias on Friday to retarget the upper end of the extended trading range in early European deals despite overbought conditions. Furthermore, the DXY refreshed multi-year tops around 112.00 in recent trading, adding 0.7% on the day. As such, EURUSD is back under pressure after a short-lived reprieve, refreshing long-term lows below the 0.9800 mark. The pair dipped to 0.9750 and was last seen clinging to the lower end of the extended trading range. The next bearish target arrives around 0.9730, followed by the 0.9700 level. The path of least resistance remaining to the downside while below at least the 1.0300 mark where the descending 100-DMA arrives.
GBPUSD
The pound failed to hold above the 1.1300 support zone and fell towards fresh 1985 lows around the 1.1150 figure earlier on Friday before bouncing marginally in recent trading. The pair stays on the defensive as the US dollar surged across the board in the aftermath of the Fed meeting. The pound was last seen changing hands around 1.1193, down 0.56% on the day. In the near term, GBPUSD needs to hold above 1.1150 on a daily closing basis in order to avoid an even deeper retreat. On the upside, should the cable resume its recovery, the initial target now arrives around 1.1200, followed by 1.1420, 1.1270 and the 1.1300 mark. Then, the descending 20-DMA, today at 1.1490, would come into the market focus. On the hourly timeframes, the RSI holds in neutral territory, pointing north. The path of least resistance remains to the downside for the time being, especially as risk aversion persists across the markets.
USDJPY
USDJPY saw an extremely volatile session on Thursday as the Japanese government has finally intervened the market to buy the yen. As a result, the pair slumped from fresh 24-year tops just below 146.00 down to 140.00. Still, the dollar finished above 142.00 and continues the bounce on Friday, challenging the 143.00 figure during the European trading hours. During the recent slide, the greenback fell below the 144.00 support sone to derail the ascending 20-DMA for the first time since mid-August. Should the pair fail to finish the day above this moving average, today at 142.20, the short-term downside pressure could reemerge. In a wider picture, however, the USDJPY pair looks set to extend the ascent in the medium term. After some hesitation, USDJPY could climb back to the mentioned tops and refresh multi-year highs beyond 146.00.
XAUUSD
The price of gold has been in consolidation mode these days, holding below the $1,700 psychological level since mid-September. Earlier this month, the bullion fell below the descending 20-DMA, attracting more intense selling pressure. This week, the XAUUSD pair fell to the $1,654 mark for the first time since April 2020 before rebounding marginally. The yellow metal has settled around $1,660 since then, regaining bearish bias ahead of the weekend as the dollar jumped to fresh long-term tops. In the coming days and weeks, XAUUSD is likely to hold below the $1,700 mark, with downside risks persisting while below the mentioned 20-DMA, today at $1,698. As such, the moving average strengthens the $1,700 resistance zone at this stage. A failure to regain $1,675 on a weekly closing basis implies another negative week for the metal. In a wider picture, gold has been on the defensive for a sixth month in a row.
