Greenback on the Front Foot as Stocks Consolidate Further

The greenback is higher so far Friday, outperforming the rest of G10 while commodity-tied antipodeans are seeing furtive gains. Price action is muted, however, with no signs of a trend reversal across most major pairs just yet.

Newsflow has been thin on the ground, but markets are eyeing further lockdowns in Victoria, the second-largest Australian state, after the more transmissive UK strain of Coronavirus was detected in the state. Victoria will undergo a sharp five-day lockdown to combat further any spread. This cemented the pullback from the Thursday high, as AUD/USD retreats to $0.7720.

Focus Friday turns to the Russian rate decision (rates seen unchanged at 4.25%) and the prelim February read of Uni. of Michigan confidence data. There are no central bank speakers of note.