FOREX Update: US Dollar gains on Euro, Major Currencies over Eurozone debt fears

By CountingPips.com

The US dollar has been gaining ground on the other major currencies in forex trading today as fears over European sovereign debt continued despite a Eurozone aid package for Ireland. The dollar has been trading higher against the euro, British pound sterling, Japanese yen, Australian dollar, New Zealand dollar and the Canadian dollar while losing ground to the Swiss franc, according to data by Oanda in the afternoon of the US trading session.

The US stock markets, meanwhile, were sharply lower earlier today before pulling back some with the Dow Jones industrial average currently down by over 40 points, the NASDAQ lower by over 10 points and the S&P 500 declining by more than 2 points at time of writing.

In commodites, oil has advanced by $1.95 to trade at the $85.73 per barrel level while gold has edged higher by approximately $5.00 to trade at the $1367.40 per ounce level.

The euro has declined by over 100 pips from the start of trading yesterday even after the European Union announced a rescue package worth approximately $90 billion for Ireland. Investors have set their eyes on the other EU countries with sovereign debt issues and whether more rescue packages will be forthcoming.

EUR/USD Daily Chart – The EUR/USD opened the week trading near the 1.3241 exchange rate and after a few attempts at a move higher, the currency was sold off sharply in the European session and into the American session to a two-month low point. The pair has come off the low for day at 1.3063 to trade back over 1.3100 and right at the 200-day moving average in red.