Asian session review: the dollar declined against the euro and pound

During today's Asian trading, the dollar index continued to decline, as optimism related to the possibility of early approval of a coronavirus vaccine in the US weakens the attractiveness of the US currency as a "safe haven"asset. The ICE index, which tracks the dynamics of the US dollar against six currencies (euro, swiss franc, yen, canadian dollar, pound and swedish krona), fell 0.1%.

Yesterday, the Financial Times newspaper wrote that US President Donald Trump intends to circumvent the usual regulatory standards in order to force approval in the country of an experimental vaccine developed by AstraZeneca Plc and the University of Oxford, before the November presidential election.

Previously, the Food and drug administration (FDA) officially authorized the use of plasma taken from people who have had coronavirus to treat infected patients.

Traders' attention this week is focused on the speech of Federal reserve Chairman Jerome Powell at the Federal reserve Bank event in Kansas city. The Symposium, organized by the Kansas city Fed, annually gathers the heads of world Central banks, finance ministers, academics and financial market participants in Jackson hole. This year's event will be held online on August 27-28. Its theme is "Moving into the next decade: consequences of monetary policy". Powell is expected to talk in his speech about a long-running review of the Fed's strategy.

The yuan rose in value on information about a telephone conversation between representatives of the US administration and Vice Premier of the state Council of China Liu He. A report published on the website of the US trade mission notes that US trade representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin noted progress in implementing the first phase of the trade agreement between the US and China, following a telephone conversation with Liu He.