Market commentary
- May saw the dollar continue on its downward trajectory that it started in April. The ramp up of the economic recovery helped push inflation to multi-year highs. U.S. interest rates, however, held steady in May and the impact of inflation was felt in a weaker USD. The ICE U.S. Dollar Index® (USDX®) started the month above 91 but by mid-month fell below 90. For the rest of May, the index bracketed the 90 level, winding down the month there, posting a net 1.3% decline.
- In Europe, currencies mostly followed April’s move higher during the month. Equity markets in Europe hit record highs in May, but varying rates of COVID-19 recovery impacted FX rates. EUR stayed above the $1.20 level for the entire month, the first time since January. The euro climbed above $1.22 and held that level going into month end, closing at $1.2125, a gain of just over 1½%. GBP did better, rising almost 4 cents during the month and closing above $1.42 on the last trading session of May, the first such close in over 3 years. CHF gained about 2% against USD in May, rising to 0.8985 at month end. The Scandinavian currencies generally did better versus the dollar in May, with the DKK and SEK posting a 2% improvement but NOK ended May little changed against USD. In Eastern Europe, RUB gained on higher oil prices and HUF rose to a 2 year high of 283.75 per USD as Hungary’s economy reopened.
- Asia-Pacific currencies generally improved against the dollar in May. CNY was one of the better performers, posting steady gains throughout the month, climbing to a 3 year higher of 6.368 per dollar at the end of May. Strong economic growth in China and relatively high interest rates helped drive the yuan higher. NZD added a cent to $0.7277 despite the central bank’s statement on keeping rates low for an extended period. AUD was little changed in May while JPY gave ground for most of the month but posted a rally near month end to finish down slightly at 109.54 per dollar. INR recouped its April losses even though COVID-19 cases in India rose to the highest in the world. INR ended May at 72.51 per dollar.
- Elsewhere, CAD continued to climb higher against USD, rising to yet another 6 year high in May. The Bank of Canada is speculated to be closer to raising rates than most central banks and that is helping to propel CAD higher. CAD ended the month at 1.2066 per USD. TRY fell to an all-time low close in May, 8.54 per dollar, as the continual management shake ups at Turkey’s central bank made investors nervous. Latin America’s currencies improved slightly during May; MXN rose above 20 per dollar and held that level for the rest of the month. ZAR had one of the better months in May, gaining almost 5% rising above 14 per dollar for the first time in 18 months.
USDX® Performance
| Spot rates | TICKER | 3-May-21 | 31-May-21 | Monthly Change |
| USD/EUR | EUR A0-FX | 1.20626 | 1.22245 | 1.324% |
| JPY/USD | JPY A0-FX | 109.055 | 109.563 | -0.464% |
| USD/GBP | GBP A0-FX | 1.3908 | 1.4205 | 2.091% |
| CAD/USD | CAD A0-FX | 1.22759 | 1.20654 | 1.745% |
| SEK/USD | SEK A0-FX | 8.4081 | 8.28644 | 1.468% |
| CHF/USD | CHF A0-FX | 0.91056 | 0.89882 | 1.306% |
| US Dollar Index | DX A0 | 90.945 | 89.832 | -1.239% |
| Other contracts | TICKER | 3-May-21 | 31-May-21 | Monthly Change |
| Mini Brent Crude | BM-ICS | 67.56 | 69.32 | 2.539% |
| MSCI World Index | MWL | 2945.1 | 2977.6 | 1.091% |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Index | MME | 1336.3 | 1360.9 | 1.808% |
| Mini US Dollar/Offshore Renminbi | CHM-ICS | 6.4824 | 6.3684 | 1.869% |
USDX® Futures Performance (YTD)
Manage $USD risk in a single transaction
USDX® futures and options offer investors tools to speculate on moves in the $USD relative to a basket of world currencies.
| USDX® Futures | Mini USDX® Futures | USDX® Options | |
| Trade on | ICE Futures U.S. | ICE Futures Singapore | ICE Futures U.S. |
| Contract size | One contract = $1000 X index value | One contract = US $200 x index value | One futures contract ($1000 X Index value) |
| Expiry | Third Wednesday of the expiration month | Cash-settled against USDX® Futures on the last Trading Day for the expiry month | Third Wednesday of the expiration month |
| Settlement | Physically settled against the six component currencies in their respective percentage weights | Cash-settled against the USDX® futures final settlement price | Physically settled against the six component currencies in their respective percentage weights |
| Trading hours | 8:00 P.M. - 5.00 P.M. ET | 8:00 A.M. - 6.00 A.M. SGT | 8:00 P.M. - 5.00 P.M. ET |
| Symbol | DX | SDX | DX |
| Product spec | View now » | View now » | View now » |