Dollar, yen buoyed as US banking sector fears put safe-havens back in vogue

Renewed concerns regarding the state of the US economy and banking sector caused both the yen and the US dollar, both safe haven assets, to experience a steep increase in value. The dollar index rose 0.01% to 101.80, with shares of First Republic Bank slumping 50% after a fall in deposits of more than $100bn in Q1. Despite the risk to small US banks, Joseph Capurso, Head of international and sustainable economics at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, expected the USD to stay elevated. Meanwhile, US consumer confidence fell to a nine-month low in April and fresh economic data, including the fourth straight month of contraction in the US Richmond Fed manufacturing index, surfaced to heighten concerns regarding recession.