InvestNow News – 29th May – Legg Mason – The Dollar is King… Or is it?
Richard Lawrence, Senior Vice President, Portfolio Management – 19 May 2020
The indiscriminate selloff that battered financial markets during March left no stone unturned. For globally focused managers such as ourselves that meant currency markets were a source of significant volatility during the month. While the news from China in early 2020 gave us some concern, there was little foreshadowing of the carnage to come as January and early February were relatively benign periods for currency performance, with the dollar index (DXY) appreciating a modest 3.6%. However, from February 20 until March 9, DXY dropped by 5% and the U.S. equity market sold off as investors anticipated preemptive policy easing by the Federal Reserve (Fed) in response to the rising economic risk presented by the coronavirus outbreak.
Around March 9, all hell broke loose in the currency complex as global demand for dollars surged. One way this shows up is via the widening of currency basis. Below is a chart of EUR basis showing a drastic drop during mid-March—this indicates investors paying a premium for dollars amidst diminished liquidity. The dollar index surged from 95 to almost 103 by March 20.