The dollar dropped on Wednesday, with the safe-haven currency hitting a nearly two-week low, while the euro rose on cautious optimism over peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six peer currencies, was down 0.56% at 97.85, having earlier touched its lowest level since March 17.
The euro rallied against the dollar to hit its highest since March 1, up 0.60% at 1.1152.
The moves came as investors adjusted their defensive bets following Russia’s promise during peace talks on Tuesday to reduce its attack on Kyiv.
Stock futures were slightly higher in overnight trading Wednesday ahead of the last trading day of the month and quarter.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average was near flat. S&P 500 futures ticked up 0.1% and Nasdaq 100 futures added 0.3%.
Stocks are coming off a down session Wednesday in which the Dow and S&P 500 each snapped four-day win streaks. The Dow shed 65.38 points, or 0.2%. The S&P 500 fell 0.6% and the Nasdaq lost 1.2%.
Oil prices gained over 2% on Wednesday as another U.S. crude stock drawdown indicated tight supplies and investors worried about possible new Western sanctions against Russia.
Brent futures climbed 2.9% to end the day at $113.35 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude settled 3.4%, or $3.58, higher at $107.82 per barrel.
U.S. crude stockpiles fell by a bigger-than-expected 3.4 million barrels last week, cutting inventories in the world’s top consumer to 410 million barrels, their lowest since September 2018, government data showed.
Gold rose on Wednesday, buoyed by a weaker dollar and a slight pullback in U.S. bond yields, while investors awaited more details from Russia-Ukraine talks in Turkey.
U.S. gold futures rose 1.11% to $1,939.2. Spot gold was up 0.76% after hitting its lowest since Feb. 28 on hopes for a negotiated end to the Ukraine conflict.
On Tuesday, gold prices dropped as much as 1.8% to their lowest level since February 28 on signs of progress in negotiations between Russia and Ukraine before recovering to close only 0.2% lower on the day.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 provisionally closed down by 0.7%, with retail stocks shedding 2.7% to lead losses, while oil and gas stocks gained 3%.
At the top of the Stoxx 600, Italy’s Telecom Italia surged more than 7% amid speculation over a takeover bid for its enterprise services unit.
Investor sentiment was boosted on Tuesday following negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian officials in Turkey, at which Russia’s deputy defense minister claimed Moscow had decided to “drastically” cut back its military activity near Ukraine’s capital.