US futures fall as US overtakes China in Coronavirus infections

The US dollar index rose slightly after suffering a significant drop this week. The rise came a day after we received the worst jobless claims data from the US. The numbers showed that more than 3 million people filed for unemployment insurance in the past week. This was a significant number compared to the previous four-week average of 232k claims. The focus now shifts to Friday next week, when we will receive the official nonfarm payrolls of the month. Expectations for this report are low. Analysts polled by Reuters expect the unemployment rate to jump to 4%.

US futures pointed to a lower open after three days of rallying. Futures tied to the Dow, S&P500, and Nasdaq point to a 2% decline. The latest action could be because of the surging number of Coronavirus cases in the US. Just yesterday, the country surpassed China on the number of infections. Today, a new analysis by Washington University showed that the disease could kill more than 81k Americans by June. This means that the ongoing lockdown could continue for a longer period than expected. The research came a day after Trump held an acrimonious phone call with President Xi Jinping of China.

Oil prices declined today even as Russia called for a new OPEC+ deal to deal with oil prices. In a statement, the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund said that he hoped that a deal would prevent the current rout in prices. This news raises the possibility that Russia and Saudi Arabia could meet to address the current situation. Meanwhile, talks are continuing among US oil companies to reduce supplies and boost prices.

EUR/USD

The EUR/USD pair declined today following five days of back-to-back gains. The pair dropped from a weekly high of 1.1086 to a low of 1.0993. On the hourly chart, this price is below the resistance level that is shown in yellow below. The price is between the 50% and 38.2% Fibonacci Retracement level. The price could drop towards the 38.2% Fibonacci Retracement level at 1.0956 and then resume the upward trend.

XBR/USD

The XBR/USD pair declined to an intraday low of 28.17. On the 30-minute chart, the lowest point of the day was at the important support level at the lower end of the triangle pattern shown in yellow below. At this point, the pair could breakout below the support pf 28.17. Alternatively, the pair may rise as it attempts to test the important resistance level of 29.00, which is shown in blue below.

GBP/USD

The GBP/USD pair resumed the upward trend and is now trading at the 1.2288 level. This happened as the pair moved above the resistance line of the ascending triangle shown in blue. It also ignored news that Boris Johnson had tested positive for the illness. The pair may continue rising as it attempts to test the important resistance level of 1.2350. This is confirmed by the momentum and RSI indicators, which are rising.