Major currencies remained jittery on Friday as markets considered the impact of a politically turbulent week that saw the collapse of France's government and the brief imposition of martial law in South Korea.
Major currencies remained jittery on Friday as markets considered the impact of a politically turbulent week that saw the collapse of France's government and the brief imposition of martial law in South Korea.
The U.S. dollar spiked against South Korea's won KRW= after local media reported that South Korea's main opposition Democratic Party said lawmakers were on standby after receiving reports of another martial law declaration.
The won was last down 0.43% at 1419.32.
South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol shocked the nation and his own ruling People Power Party on Tuesday when he imposed martial law and then rescinded it hours later, spreading turmoil in global financial markets.
The political upheaval has kept Korean markets on edge even as authorities pledged to provide 'unlimited liquidity' to stabilise conditions.
In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin BTC= took a breather after catapulting above $100,000 for the first time a day earlier, and even sceptics now expect a crypto-friendly Trump administration to feed an extended rally.
On the broader economic front, the spotlight will be on the U.S. non-farm payrolls report for November due later in the day as investors look to second guess the pace of future Federal Reserve rate cuts.
Payrolls are expected to have increased by 200,000 jobs last month, according to a Reuters survey, after rising by only 12,000 in October, the lowest number since December 2020.
"The Fed will be wary of placing too much weight on the expected steep rebound in payrolls in November," said Sean Callow, senior FX analyst at InTouch Capital Markets.
"So long as the unemployment rate doesn't fall back to 4.0%, markets should be comfortable about leaning towards a rate cut this month, which should keep a lid on dollar rallies."
Markets currently see about a 72% chance that the Federal Reserve will deliver a 25-basis-point rate cut when it meets on Dec. 17-18, up from 66.5% a week ago, CME FedWatch tool showed.
The dollar index =USD, which measures the greenback against six rivals, rose 0.10% to 105.82 after slipping towards a three-week low in the previous session.
The euro EUR=EBS slid 0.14% to $1.0574 after bouncing on Thursday as French bonds stabilised, pulling further away from a two-year low of $1.03315 hit at the end of November.
French President Emmanuel Macron met allies and parliament leaders on Thursday as he sought to swiftly appoint a new prime minister to replace Michel Barnier, who officially resigned a day after opposition lawmakers voted to oust his government.
For now, the European Central Bank isn't expected to react to heightened political turmoil in Europe when it meets next week.
All but two of 75 economists polled by Reuters believe the ECB will trim 25 basis points from its deposit rate on Dec. 12.
Traders are also all but certain about a rate cute next week.
The euro bloc currency was on track to post a loss this week, the fourth in the last five weeks.
BOJ RATE OUTLOOK IN FOCUS
Traders are pondering the likelihood of a rate hike at the Bank of Japan's meeting on Dec. 18-19 after media reports published on Wednesday suggested the BOJ may stand pat this month, muddling market expectations.
But comments from typically dovish policymaker Toyoaki Nakamura that he's not opposed to rate hikes helped push the currency higher on Thursday.
The dollar was down 0.06% against the yen at 149.98. Government data showed Japanese household spending dropped 1.3% in October from a year earlier, coming in better than expected.
Sterling GBP=D3 traded at $1.2746, down 0.11% on the day.
In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin BTC= hovered lower as traders locked in profit after Thursday's break above the $100,000 milestone.
The world's best known cryptocurrency has been on a tear since November on bets that Donald Trump's U.S. presidential election win will usher in a friendly regulatory environment for cryptocurrencies.
Trump on Thursday said he was appointing former PayPal PYPL.O Chief Operating Officer David Sacks as his artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency czar.
Bitcoin briefly slid to a one-week low and was last down 1.11% at $97,911, well off its all-time-high of $103,649 hit the previous day.
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The S&P 500 edged to a record closing high on Tuesday, marking its fifth consecutive day of gains, as strong advances in technology stocks offset a sharp selloff in healthcare shares and a mixed batch of corporate earnings.
European shares climbed on Thursday, as a relief rally swept through global markets after artificial intelligence (AI) bellwether Nvidia reported strong earnings, while investors awaited the release of delayed U.S. jobs data.
Dutch smartphone maker Fairphone is entering the U.S. market, betting on growing demand for repairable and sustainable devices as right-to-repair legislation gains traction, according to Reuters.
On 2 September, spot gold briefly broke through the historic threshold of $3,500 an ounce, before settling just under that level at $3,494. This rally not only eclipsed the previous peak set in April but also cemented gold’s position as one of the best-performing assets of 2025.
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran are escalating, with Washington ordering a significant military build-up in the region and multiple countries evacuating diplomatic staff amid fears of further instability.
The situation in Cuba was heating up and called for restraint following a deadly incident involving a Florida-registered speedboat off the coast of the Caribbean island, the Kremlin said on Thursday (26 February).
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, arrived in Geneva and may hold talks with U.S. officials, according to the RIA news agency.
Pakistani air strikes hit a weapons depot on the western outskirts of Kabul overnight, triggering hours of secondary explosions that rattled homes across the Afghan capital and left residents fearing further violence.
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Türkiye’s national energy company, TPAO, has struck a new cooperation deal with U.S. energy giant Chevron, signing a memorandum of understanding to explore joint oil and gas exploration and production opportunities, the Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Ministry announced on Thursday.
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