Market News
Dollar whipsawed on hopes of an end to the Iran war - REUTERS
By Saqib Iqbal Ahmed
NEW YORK, March 9 (Reuters) - The dollar pared gains on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump told CBS in an interview he thinks the war against Iran "is very complete," allaying investor worries about a protracted conflict that could disrupt global energy supplies and weigh on economic growth.
The United States is "very far ahead" of Trump's initial four- to five-week estimated time frame on the war, the president said, according to a CBS reporter on X.
The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran rattled investors in recent days and has driven a surge in oil prices, pushing investors toward the safety of the greenback.
"The market is trading on hope," said Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex LLC.
"If this is the end of the war, then yes, the dollar comes off and stocks rally ... but we don't really know what it means yet," Chandler said of Trump's reported comments.
The euro was last up 0.1% at $1.1630, after earlier touching a more than three-month low of $1.1505. The dollar was 0.1% lower against the Japanese yen after touching a six-week peak earlier in the session.
Sterling also reversed course to trade 0.1% higher against the dollar.
Trump's comments lifted stocks. Oil prices, which had surged on worries about an extended conflict with Iran disrupting energy supply, pared gains sharply.
Stocks, bonds and precious metals slid earlier in the session as investors worried about the impact of surging oil prices on global inflation and economic growth. Iran on Monday named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father as supreme leader, signaling that hardliners remain firmly in charge a week into the war.
