The dollar held gains against a basket of major currencies on Thursday as escalating coronavirus cases in Europe stoked investor fears that fresh lockdowns would further hit the already fragile economic recovery.
Gold prices fell to a one-month low, extending the previous session's sharp slide as the dollar remained the preferred refuge from risks due to mounting COVID-19 cases ahead of the U.S. Presidential election.
The safe-haven dollar rose on Wednesday, pushing the euro to one-week lows on prospects of a national lockdown in Germany and France as coronavirus cases surged, with implied volatility gauges in the common currency and the yen hitting multi-month highs as traders positioned for next Tuesday's U.S. election.
Gold fell as much as 2% and silver nearly 6% on Wednesday as investors flocked to the dollar in the absence of signs of any imminent U.S. fiscal stimulus measures to ease the economic blow from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jean Castex has been named the new prime minister of France after Edouard Philippe unexpectedly resigned Friday.
There are more than 930,000 reported cases of COVID-19 globally, with over 47,000 deaths, data compiled by Johns Hopkins University showed.
As of Tuesday, more than 190,000 cases of coronavirus have been reported across the globe, resulting in at least 7,890 deaths.
Iran has temporarily freed about 85,000 prisoners, including political prisoners, a spokesman for its judiciary said on Tuesday, Reuters reported.
President Emmanuel Macron of France said people may leave their homes only for essential duties. "We are in a health war," Macron said.
"The next eight weeks are critical," Trump said as he declared a national emergency over coronavirus.
France and the U.S. have agreed to hold off on a potential tariffs war until the end of the year.
France is bringing in new rules on employee stock options to lure in talent and compete with the U.S.' top tech hub.
"I believe that President Putin is going to try and step in and be the peacemaker here," says William Cohen, also a former senator.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin voices opposition to the OECD about the recent introduction of digital services taxes.
U.S. stock futures turned around from early morning declines and were pointing to a strong Wall Street open Wednesday.
"Europe doesn't have the real high-tech champions and the real e-commerce champions that we do," says the Commerce secretary.
U.S. stock futures were pointing to a lower open after President Trump said it might be better to wait until after the 2020 election to strike a trade deal with China.
"In some ways, I like the idea of waiting until after the election for the China deal, but they want to make a deal now," Trump said from London.
European markets traded mixed on Friday amid strained relations between the U.S. and China over protests in Hong Kong.
French President Emmanuel Macron should not pick a fight with Germany, writes Dr Michael Ivanovitch. Instead, he should be focusing on the economy and expanding foreign markets for French goods and services.
