On Wednesday, the most active EUR/USD currency pair remained near the 1.0800 level. For days investors sat on the sideline in anticipation of tariff announcements from the hand of US president Donald Trump. So many investors chicken out from making big bets on the market. This reluctance comes from a general lack of knowledge regarding the potential effects of these tariffs on the economy.
One bright spot was the March private payrolls report, where U.S. This increase was well over what many economists had predicted, which was an increase of only 105,000 jobs. On balance, it was very positive employment news, but the US Dollar found it hard to catch a bid. This reflects that traders are risk averse and reluctant to put new money to work on the key currency pairs. This lack of confidence is especially evident in the sterling market which sees GBP/USD trading just a few pips higher at the time of writing just above 1.2900.
The upcoming announcement concerning ‘reciprocal tariffs’ is set to take place on “Liberation Day” at 20:00 GMT, adding to the market’s cautious atmosphere. Traders are eagerly watching these events unfold, from Day One, as they may impact and reshape the entire landscape as well as currency valuations.
XAU/USD, which is closely correlated to gold prices, has struggled to establish direction. Investors are looking for additional signals, especially as the tariff landscape remains murky. These mixed signals from the employment data combined with the anticipated announcements have many traders on the sidelines.
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