USD remains near the highs of the year despite the likely prospect of three Fed rate cuts this year and Congress at war - ING

FX strategists at ING suggest that the reason for the dollar’s resilience is the lack of attractive alternatives. And in a world of secular stagnation, no one wants a stronger currency right now.

• "Deep challenges faced in Europe and Asia now mean that it will be Washington’s job to get the dollar weaker - either through trade conciliation or the Fed shifting to a full-on easing cycle. Neither of those outcomes look immediate, meaning that the risk environment could well deteriorate into year-end. We continue to favour the JPY.
• All this means that EUR/USD should languish in the 1.05-1.10 range into year-end as the European slowdown broadens from the manufacturing to the service sector and the ECB resumes Quantitative Easing. The likelihood that the Brexit deadline is extended into next March means no resolution here and that GBP could well fall another 5%.
• Elsewhere in Europe, the Polish FX mortgage story could have been worse but the region is slowly showing signs of slowdown and CE4 FX is not immune. In the EMEA space, RUB may be the best performer on seasonal current account trends through 4Q19.
• In Asia, we’re fearful that the PBOC allows more CNY weakness to show through as trade relations deteriorate further. Asian FX is following and it looks like the MAS will have to join with easier policy in October. In Latam, the medium/long term prospects for the BRL are improving, just as those for the MXN are deteriorating. But timing is everything!"