XE Morning Update

The NZDUSD opens at 0.6731 (mid-rate) this morning.

The British pound tumbled to multi-year lows and is the weakest of the G10 currencies as the prospect of the UK exiting Europe without a deal increased.

New UK prime Minister Boris Johnson has taken a hard line stance and is refusing to meet with European Union leaders over Brexit unless they first agree to remove the backstop from any future negotiations. Mr Johnson added that he is willing to go the “extra thousand miles" in negotiations with the EU but insisted he will "make it absolutely clear that the backstop is no good". The GBP declined to a fresh 28-month low (1.2210) against the USD on the news.

Other currencies and equity markets with the exception of the FTSE are treading water as investors look ahead to the Fed monetary policy statement in the early hours of Thursday morning. The Fed are widely expected to cut rates by 25 basis points with the outside chance of a 50 basis point cut increasing from 19% to 27% overnight.

This afternoon the BOJ are tipped to sit tight while at the same time committing to keep interest rates ultralow while they too wait for the Fed announcement. The BOJ will be concerned that an aggressive cut by the Fed will lead to a surge in the yen as the interest rate gap between the two economies converges.

Global equity markets are mixed, - Dow +0.15%, S&P 500 -0.17%, FTSE +1.82%, DAX -0.02%, CAC -0.16%, Nikkei -0.19%, Shanghai -0.12%.

Gold prices are marginally higher trading at $1,422 an ounce. WTI Crude Oil prices have inched higher, up 0.3%, trading at $56.93 a barrel.

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