Chart Of The Day: Is U.S. Dollar Domination About To End?

 | Mar 27, 2018 08:00

h3 China, Central Banks Weigh On USD

The US dollar is on course to get clobbered by two serious heavy weights: China and global central banks.

China has launched oil futures contracts denominated in yuan, its first commodity trading vehicle open to foreign investors. The Wall Street Journal characterized the move as, among other things, "part of China's drive to turn its currency into a global force in markets."

As the world’s biggest oil consumer, China also has a massive impact on oil prices. Increased demand for the Chinese currency will come at the expense of demand for American dollars. This reduced need for the greenback will cause a ripple throughout US markets. Foreign oil exports generally invest their dollar proceeds in US assets. However, if foreign oil exports are being paid for in another currency, it could make more sense to invest in that currency.

In other negative news for the dollar, global central bankers may be fed up with President Donald Trump’s high-stakes trade poker game with China. Central bankers world-wide are reportedly considering shifting some of their foreign exchange reserves from dollars to euro. This too would create reduced demand for the dollar.

Despite these two drivers weighing on the USD, the global reserve currency is currently bouncing on hopes that negotiations will keep all parties off the trade battlefield. Should the talks succeed, growth will resume, sentiment will improve and perhaps central bankers won’t need to shift currency reserves.

Nevertheless, the euro-dollar pair is trading along a pattern in which demand overcomes supply.