The greenback struggles to attract sustained buying interest despite still low levels
EURUSD
After the recent rally, the US dollar came off this week’s highs to turn negative on Thursday as buyers were spooked by the 102.75 zone. As such, the USD index came across local resistance during the previous session to settle above the 102.00 figure, suggesting traders are indecisive during the first trading week of the year. As such, the greenback struggles to attract sustained buying interest despite still low levels. The 102.00 level represents the immediate significant barrier for the time being. In a wider picture, the DXY remains downbeat, pressured by Fed’s dovish intentions. As the buck retreated, EURUSD turned upbeat after four bearish sessions in a row, flirting with the ascending 20-DMA during the early European deals. The pair briefly slipped below 1.0900 during the previous session to settle around 1.0950 in recent trading. After an earlier rejection from 1.0957, the euro has steadied just above the mentioned moving average that represents the immediate support on the way towards the 1.0890 zone that capped losses on Wednesday. On the upside, the nearest resistance now arrives in the 1.0965 zone, followed by 1.10 mark.
GBPUSD
The pound extends yesterday’s gains on Thursday as the dollar turned slightly lower following the recent gains. The pair sees a modest bullish bias today, with downside momentum looking limited at this stage. The cable thus refrained from a deeper bearish correction earlier in the week as the dollar’s recovery was capped by some profit-taking. Also on the positive side, the pair is back above the key SMAs. In early European trading on Thursday, the cable looks upbeat, holding just below the 1.2700 figure. In a wider picture, the cable stays bullish now after last month’s slide to local lows around the 1.2500 figure. The daily RSI is positive in neutral territory, suggesting buyers could stay in the game in the immediate term. In recent trading, GBPUSD was changing hands around 1.2690, +0.22% on the day. On the flip side, the immediate significant support is now represented by the 1.2670 zone where the 20-DMA lies. On the upside, a decisive ascent above 1.2700 would pave the way to a more sustained ascent.
USDJPY
The USDJPY pair finished 2023 on negative footing as the greenback stayed pressured across the market. On Thursday, the dollar extended its bounce from cyclical lows registered around 140.25 last week. In the process, the pair regained the 143.00 figure before finding local resistance in the 143.90 area earlier in the session. After facing the mentioned barrier, the USDJPY pair stayed in the upper end of the extended trading range, suggesting additional gains could be in the cards at this stage. As such, the greenback has settled above 143.50, trying to attract more decisive demand. Also, the pair now holds above the 20-DMA, which implies that downside risks have eased since plunging to the mentioned cyclical lows. The dollar was last seen changing hands around 143.70, up 0.30% on the day. Now, the greenback needs to decisively break the 144.00 region in order to stage another local rally. The daily RSI extended its recovery from the 30 mark to retain bullish bias, suggesting the pair could at least stay afloat in the near term. On the hourly timeframes, the technical picture keeps improving, with the RSI bullish while prices are now above the key SMAs.
XAUUSD
The price of gold turned positive on Thursday for the first time since the start of the year, holding in the green on Thursday, albeit the upside momentum looks limited at this stage. After a brief dip below the ascending 20-DMA for the first time since mid-December, the XAUUSD pair bounced slightly today. The metal extended gains to $2,050 zone earlier in the to settle marginally below this area in early European deals, adding 0.53% on the day. As such, the technical picture has improved slightly, with the bullion holding well above the 20-DMA. Should gold stay above this immediate support in the near term, a stronger ascent could be expected. If the pressure reemerges any time soon, the bullion could see another retreat in the days to come. On the weekly timeframes, the technical picture has deteriorated somehow, while a wider picture remains relatively upbeat. On the upside, the immediate significant target is now represented by the $2,100 psychological level. On the flip side, the nearest support lies around $2,035 where the mentioned moving average arrives.
