- The British pound fell to a new 2021 low against the US dollar as the British government is rocked by a scandal indicating failure by government officials in the Prime Minister’s office seemingly breaching coronavirus restrictions, as new cases in the UK continue to rise and the government announces new coronavirus restrictions to considerable public disquiet.
- The Bank of Canada kept its interest rate and monetary policy steady yesterday in its monthly policy release. It has little notable effect on the value of the Canadian dollar.
- Stocks and other risky assets mostly rose again yesterday as many analysts are coming to believe that the omicron variant will not be as bad as feared, with data from South African hospitals suggesting that while the variant seems more transmissible, it does not cause more severe disease than the globally dominant Delta variant, and may even be milder in its effects. However, some scientists are warning that we are likely to see very high levels of infection, and we do not yet know what levels of severe disease this will bring.
- The Forex market remains relatively quiet, with a continuing small move against the long-term bullish US dollar trend, with riskier currencies advancing against safe-havens. The British pound stands out as relatively weak.
- Tomorrow will see a very key US CPI (inflation) data release, which is likely to trigger volatility in the Forex market.
- The omicron coronavirus variant is still being researched and monitored, with morbidity remaining unclear, although early signs are encouraging. Markets remain prone to very strong risk-off movement if forthcoming news about the potency of the omicron variant is negative.
- Last week saw the seventh consecutive global weekly rise in new confirmed coronavirus cases after two months in which cases fell steadily.
- It is estimated that 55.3% of the world’s population has received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccination.
- Total confirmed new coronavirus cases worldwide stand at over 268.1 million with an average case fatality rate of 1.97%.
- The rate of new coronavirus infections appears to now be increasing most quickly in Andorra, Australia, Bolivia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Italy, Jordan, South Korea, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Mali, Malta, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad, and the UK.