Dollar stands tall amid Delta covid variant, US stimulus woes,

Here is what you need to know on Wednesday, September 8:

The market mood remains tepid amid mostly lower Asian markets, as they followed a lacklustre performance on Wall Street overnight. Spiking cases of Delta covid variant in the US and potential restrictions reignited economic concern, souring the investors’ sentiment while boosting the US dollar’s safe-haven appeal. The S&P 500 futures post small gains while Treasury yields remains on the defensive.

US President Joe Biden on Thursday will present a six-pronged strategy aimed at fighting the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant and increasing covid vaccinations.

Gold price keeps the downside intact below $1800 amid the US dollar’s strength and uncertainty over the infrastructure spending bill. According to CNN News, “House Republicans could face increased pressure to vote against a bipartisan infrastructure package when they return to Washington later this month.”

Across the fx board, EUR/USD stalls its rebound and turns south once again towards 1.1800, despite upbeat Eurozone growth numbers, as the US dollar price action dominates, in absence of relevant first-tier macro news.

GBP/USD remains pressured towards 1.3750, as the Brexit concerns continue to haunt the pound traders. Post-Brexit Supply chain disruption is leading to fears of water treatment chemical shortage.

The UK government has given polluters the green light to dump raw sewage into rivers and the sea as Brexit and Covid disrupt normal water treatment, per The Independent. Meanwhile, the UK PM Boris Johnson’s tax hike plan continues to weigh.

Cryptocurrencies are licking their wounds after Tuesday’s crash, with Bitcoin looking to stabilize around $46,000. Technical difficulties with El Salvador’s Bitcoin wallet led to delays with the rollout of the Chivo Wallet, which triggered a massive sell-off across the crypto market a day ago.