Forex News: U.S. Dollar Ticked Higher Following The Extension Of

U.S. Dollar Ticked Higher Following The Extension Of U.S.-Iran Ceasefire

(RTTNews) - The U.S. Dollar value moved higher after U.S. President Donald Trump announced an indefinite extension of the ceasefire set to lapse on April 22, which boosted the stock markets. However, the blockade on Strait of Hormuz and Iran's seizure of two ships in the strait kept the tensions alive and limited the dollar's slide.

The U.S. Dollar Index, DXY, which measures the Greenback against a basket of other major currencies was last seen trading at 98.61, up by 0.24 (or 0.24%) today.

On the economic front, the Mortgage Bankers Association of America revealed that the Purchase Index in the U.S. increased to 175.60 on April 17 from 159.50 of the previous week.

Against the Euro, USD was trading at 1.171 up by 0.31%.

Against the GBP, it was trading at 1.350, up by 0.04%. According to the Office for National Statistics, the annual inflation rate rose to 3.30% in March, up from 3.00% in each of the previous two months and in line with expectations. Annual core inflation rate eased to 3.10% in March, slightly less than market expectations.

Against the USD, the Japanese Yen was trading at 159.486, down by 0.10%. According to the data released by the Ministry of Finance, Japan's trade surplus increased to JPY 667.0 billion in March from JPY 529.8 billion for the same month a year ago. For the second straight month, export growth outpaced imports. While exports rose 11.70% year-on-year to a record JPY 11,003.30 billion in March, exceeding market forecasts of 11.00%, imports rose 10.9% year-on-year to JPY 10,336.30 billion in March, surpassing market estimates of 7.10%.

The Swiss Franc was trading at 0.785, down by 0.56%; and the Canadian Dollar was trading at 1.367, down by 0.06%.

Against one unit of Australian Dollar, USD was trading at 0.716, down by 0.10%.

Yesterday, at the request of Pakistani mediators, Trump agreed to extend the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran which was announced on April 8.

Trump also expressed readiness to offer Iranian leaders some more time to come up with a peace proposal.

However, Trump refused to withdraw the "blockade" he had ordered on all ships entering and exiting Iranian ports, which was readily enforced by U.S. forces.

Iran has not officially responded to Trump's truce call.

Iran reportedly seized two ships near the strait and escorted them to Iranian shores fueling escalation concerns.

The U.S. Federal Reserve is slated to decide on monetary policy next week and investors have wound back expectations of any near-term rate cuts.

Eurostat revealed that the Eurozone's government deficit-to-GDP ratio fell to 2.90% in 2025, a mild improvement from the revised 3.00% for 2024.

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