REFILE-FOREX-Dollar drops, Aussie, Sterling gain as risk appetite increases

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* Graphic: World FX rates in 2020 https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E

By Karen Brettell
NEW YORK, April 7 (Reuters) - The greenback dropped and
riskier currencies, including the Australian dollar,
outperformed on Tuesday as risk appetite improved on hopes that
lockdowns may be slowing the spread of the coronavirus in some
countries.
U.S. stocks gained as investors moved back into riskier
assets. Sterling also rose a day after British Prime Minister Boris
Johnson was moved into intensive care due to worsening
coronavirus symptoms.
Analysts said the currency is benefiting from the increased
risk appetite that is weighing on the U.S. dollar. Johnson's
condition, while a concern, is also unlikely to mean a change in
the government's policy direction in fighting the virus.

“Despite the sad news about the UK PM Johnson, fatalities in
the UK remain relatively low and slowed for the second day,
although the apex is still thought to be about 10 days away,”
Win Thin, global head of currency strategy at Brown Brothers
Harriman in New York, said in a report.
“High-frequency data on coronavirus infections and death
rates continue to stabilize,” Thin said.
In Spain and Italy, which account for over 40% of the
world's fatalities, the death rate has been declining for
several days, and public discussion has turned to how and when
to ease weeks of drastic curbs on personal and economic
activity. In the United States, the governors of New York, New Jersey
and Louisiana pointed to tentative signs on Monday that the
coronavirus outbreak may be starting to plateau in their states
but warned against complacency as the death toll nationwide
approached 11,000. The dollar was last down 0.93% versus a basket of currencies
at 99.82. =USD
The Australian dollar AUD= jumped 1.91% to $0.6202.
Sterling GBP= gained 1.08% to $1.2361.
The euro EUR= rose 1.13% to $1.0913.
The dollar was down 0.18% against the yen JPY= as Japanese
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared a state of emergency for
parts of the country on Tuesday to counter the spread of
coronavirus. JPY=EBS A recovery in oil prices on hopes that the world's biggest
producers will agree to cut output also boosted risk
sentiment. Action by central banks to ease a scramble for dollars has
helped bring some calm to markets.
"We've got a nice decline in volatility across forex and
equity markets," said Kenneth Broux, FX strategist at Societe
Generale. "We know central banks have done a very good job in
alleviating the strain in dollar markets and that's feeding
through."

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Currency bid prices at 10:02AM (1402 GMT)
Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid
Previous Change
Session
Euro/Dollar EUR= $1.0913 $1.0791 +1.13% -2.65% +1.0916 +1.0785
Dollar/Yen JPY= 109.0000 109.2000 -0.18% +0.13% +109.2700 +108.6800
Euro/Yen EURJPY= 118.98 117.85 +0.96% -2.45% +119.0000 +117.5200
Dollar/Swiss CHF= 0.9694 0.9786 -0.94% +0.17% +0.9793 +0.9691
Sterling/Dollar GBP= 1.2361 1.2229 +1.08% -6.77% +1.2384 +1.2167
Dollar/Canadian CAD= 1.3958 1.4109 -1.07% +7.49% +1.4142 +1.3945
Australian/Doll AUD= 0.6202 0.6086 +1.91% -11.67% +0.6207 +0.6077
ar
Euro/Swiss EURCHF= 1.0581 1.0560 +0.20% -2.48% +1.0594 +1.0556
Euro/Sterling EURGBP= 0.8828 0.8822 +0.07% +4.42% +0.8864 +0.8801
NZ NZD= 0.6003 0.5930 +1.23% -10.88% +0.6015 +0.5921
Dollar/Dollar
Dollar/Norway NOK= 10.1473 10.4287 -2.70% +15.61% +10.4612 +10.1295
Euro/Norway EURNOK= 11.0777 11.2480 -1.51% +12.60% +11.2950 +11.0520
Dollar/Sweden SEK= 9.9596 10.1206 -0.56% +6.55% +10.1325 +9.9554
Euro/Sweden EURSEK= 10.8735 10.9352 -0.56% +3.86% +10.9445 +10.8641