Forex Today: Majors fluctuate in familiar ranges as risk mood improves

Here is what you need to know on Tuesday, December 21:

The greenback limited its losses against its major rivals amid rising US Treasury bond yields late Monday and seems to have gone into a consolidation phase early Tuesday with the US Dollar Index moving sideways around 96.50. November Retail Sales data from Canada and the European Commission's Consumer Confidence Index data for the euro area will be looked upon for fresh impetus later in the day.

Although Wall Street's main indexes closed deep in the negative territory on Monday, major Asian equity indexes staged an impressive recovery on Tuesday. Additionally, US stock index futures are up around 1% during the European trading hours, pointing to improving risk sentiment. Meanwhile, the 10-year US Treasury bond yield, which rose 1.5% on Monday, is posting small daily gains at 1.43%, helping the dollar stay resilient against its peers.

Meanwhile, the US has reported the first Omicron-related death on Monday and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted that the new variant was accounting for nearly three-quarters of confirmed COVID cases. In the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that they are looking at all options to slow the spread of the virus and added they are not ruling any measures out. 

EUR/USD registered modest daily gains on Monday and continues to edge higher toward 1.1300 on Tuesday. Despite this recent rebound, the pair is struggling to make a decisive move and continues to fluctuate within a two-week-old range.

GBP/USD failed to capitalize on the dollar weakness on Monday and stays under modest bearish pressure near 1.3200.

AUD/USD remains on the back foot around 0.7100 on Tuesday. Earlier in the day, the Reserve Bank of Australia noted in its meeting minutes they are committed to maintaining highly supportive monetary conditions.

USD/JPY closed flat on Monday as recovering US Treasury bond yields limited the pair's upside despite the risk-averse market environment. On Tuesday, the pair is posting small daily gains below 114.00

Gold failed to hold above $1,800 and closed near $1,790. XAU/USD is moving sideways in a relatively tight range around that level.

Bitcoin has regained its traction and started to move higher toward $50,000. Ethereum is trading in the green a little above $4,000.