Omicron Threatens Safe-Haven Currencies – 6 December, 2021

Investors hope in the Omicron variant to be mild helped the support the Dollar against other safe-haven currencies such as the Japanese yen. The sentiment helped the Australian dollar find buyers, firming after the central bank showed signs of cautious optimism. The Aussie was up 0.2% to $0.7066 per dollar having risen to its best percentage gain in seven weeks after the Reserve Bank of Australia meeting. The yen saw a 0.6% drop on Monday, falling to $113.53 per dollar, its largest drop in two weeks. The Swiss franc also managed to stabilize after its largest single day percentage fall in three months. The yuan held at 6.3713 per dollar, while the euro last stood at $1.1291. Sterling was 0.2% higher to $1.3283, and the kiwi fell to a one year low of $0.6737. After a wild sell-off, support returned to cryptocurrencies with bitcoin finding its footing at $51,230.