A more muted tone among major currencies to start the holiday season

The changes on the day are light and it reflects the lack of appetite or incentive among traders to chase anything on the week. It’s one of those times in markets where there isn’t much of a point in trying to make sense of any moves as trading conditions are exacerbated by thin liquidity.

I mean it is the holiday period after all. For EUR/USD, there are large option expiries around €1.8 billion at 1.0425. So, that might offer some pull factor on the day. But the rest of the week promises to be much quieter.

As a whole, the dollar looks to be ending the year in a prominent spot as it has capitalised on a more hawkish Fed last week. The technicals are certainly siding with the greenback as we enter the festive season at least. And barring any major headline shifts, trading sentiment should pick up from where we are leaving off at the start of next year.

That means one can ignore the movements we’re seeing in markets during this week as they will be largely influenced by thinner liquidity conditions.

It’s the best time to take a step back, review everything, and look to start the new year fresh. To those already enjoying the break, I wish you happy holidays. And to those who aren’t, well try and take it easy.

This article was written by Justin Low at www.forexlive.com.