© Reuters.

Investing.com – The U.S. dollar stabilized in early European trade Tuesday, just off a five-week high helped by its safe haven status as the standoff in Washington over the U.S. debt ceiling continued.

At 03:15 ET (07:15 GMT), the , which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, traded largely flat at 102.250.

The potential for a U.S. default of its debts if a deal is not done to lift the country’s borrowing limit, which Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reiterated could be hit as soon as June 1, has helped the dollar push higher of late, with traders seeking the greenback given it is often used as a safe haven in times of stress. 

The main parties are expected to meet once more later Tuesday, with President Joe Biden expressing confidence a deal can be done, but Republican House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Monday that the two sides were still far apart.

“Unless we see truly encouraging progress, investors’ fears may keep growing,” said analysts at ING, in a note. “Barring positive news on this end, we think the balance of risks remains tilted to the upside for the dollar for now, which should see safe-haven flows as risk sentiment stays subdued.”

Aside from this, traders are likely to focus on the release of U.S. data for April, which is expected to show sales grew 0.8% on the month in April, an improvement from the dramatic slump of 0.6% last month.

The raised interest rates last week for a 10th straight time, but hinted that it may be about to pause its aggressive policy tightening as it studies incoming economic data and assesses the impact of the tightening to date.

Inflation remained elevated in April, even if slightly lower than the prior month, and a number of Fed officials have said in separate addresses that interest rates were likely to stay higher for longer if prices continue to remain substantially above the Fed’s 2% target.

Elsewhere, rose 0.1% to 1.0880, after bouncing off a five-week low overnight, ahead of the release of preliminary first quarter for the euro zone.

This is expected to show the region barely scraped growth in the first three months of the year, rising 0.1% on the quarter and 1.3% on an annual basis.

Also of interest will be the for May, which is expected to show a deterioration of sentiment in the eurozone’s largest economy.

fell 0.3% to 1.2494 after the U.K. unexpectedly rose to 3.9% in the three months to March, raising the likelihood of the Bank of England pausing its run of increases when it next meets in June.

dropped 0.3% to 135.78, fell 0.3% to 0.6683, while rose 0.2% to 6.9643 with the yuan trading near a two-month low after Chinese data showed and grew less than expected in April. 

rose 0.1% to 19.6861 as Turkey’s presidential race heads to a runoff with incumbent Tayyip Erdogan leading his opposition rival.

The Virk brothers earned their engineering degrees at one of India’s premier engineering institutes – Punjab Engineering College – before pursuing their MBAs in the United States. Sarvjeet specialised in business management and marketing, while Tajinder focused on finance. Both brothers embarked on impressive careers right out of college, with Sarvjeet starting his first business at the age of 25 and Tajinder becoming the Vice President of Global Equity Trading at Fortis (NYSE:FTS) Bank at the same young age.

In 2009, the brothers founded Finvasia as a Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) in India. Setting out as money managers for prominent hedge funds and institutional investors, they were struck by the flaws of the financial industry in India.

Aiming to democratise the retail trading sector and provide greater accessibility to financial services and tailored products cost-effectively, the Virk brothers decided to challenge the status quo and lay the groundwork for zero-cost brokerage services. The growth they witnessed over a relatively short period of time was so remarkable that they agreed to pursue a multidimensional path. This led to the creation of the cross-industry conglomerate that Finvasia is today.

From thought to action there is only one step

Spanning several countries and industries, including technology, healthcare, and real estate, Finvasia marks a new era of engineering-driven, conflict-free and ethical businesses that shape the industry they operate in. Embarking on a multidisciplinary journey, Sarvjeet and Tajinder Virk worked towards creating an umbrella group servicing multiple verticals.

Finvasia’s diverse portfolio of brands creates an accessible, cost-effective, and integrated ecosystem that challenges industry norms and devises innovative solutions to real-world problems. Key brands within the Finvasia ecosystem include Shoonya, India’s first “Zero Cost” financial ecosystem; ZuluTrade, the world’s largest broker-agnostic social trading platform; Fxview, a globally recognised forex and OTC broker; and ActTrader, a leading fintech platform providing traders with access to a range of financial instruments.

The multidisciplinary group, along with its subsidiaries, has served a client base exceeding 5 million individuals across 190 countries, and has hosted several millions of accounts transacting trillions of dollars worth of transaction value.

The company employs over 450 employees across its offices in Australia, Japan, India, Mauritius, Cyprus, Greece, UK, South Africa, Canada, and the USA. What’s more interesting is that the Group has been EBIT positive all these years, showcasing its strong financial foundation and sustainable growth.

In 2023, Finvasia obtained an investment banking license and plans to launch a Global EMI and a neo-bank in India soon. This expansion demonstrates the company’s commitment to offering innovative financial solutions to its growing customer base.

Beyond the realm of finance, the company operates an innovative diabetes reversal medical facility that combines medical science and technology to create patient-centric treatment plans to put an end to this debilitating disease.

Also, in collaboration with a premier Indian institute, Finvasia is also developing Bodyloop, a groundbreaking project focusing on ‘in-body’ microsensors for personal health monitoring. Additionally, the group has invested in a food research entity that aims to address medical problems through food-based solutions, including a patent-pending natural food extract to provide relief for skin-related fungal infections.

The inspiring journey of the Virk brothers, who transformed Finvasia into a global enterprise, demonstrates the power of vision, innovation, and tenacity. Their unwavering dedication to creating ethical, sustainable products that benefit stakeholders has set new benchmarks for excellence, paving the way for a brighter, more inclusive future.

As Finvasia continues to grow and evolve, the bold leadership of Sarvjeet and Tajinder Virk remains at the core of the company’s success, forever changing the landscape of finance, healthcare, and technology. Their compelling story serves as an inspiration to entrepreneurs and visionaries worldwide, and with their continued innovation and dedication to excellence, Finvasia is set to make an even greater impact in the years to come.

© Reuters.

Investing.com — Most Asian currencies retreated on Tuesday as disappointing Chinese economic data posited a weak outlook for the region’s largest economy, while hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials also brewed uncertainty over the path of U.S. interest rates.

fell 0.1% and traded near a two-month low after data showed and grew less than expected in April. The readings, which come on the heels of several weak economic indicators earlier this month, point to a staggered recovery in Asia’s largest economy, even after the country relaxed most anti-COVID measures earlier this year.

The weak data also saw markets positioning for a potential 25 basis point rate cut by the People’s Bank next month, which is likely to fuel further weakness in the yuan. The currency was trading just shy of the psychologically important 7 level against the dollar.

Weakness in China spilled over into other Asian currency markets, particularly those with a high trade exposure to the country. The fell 0.1%, while the led losses across Southeast Asia with a 0.3% dip, as traders also locked in recent profits in the currency.

The fell 0.1%, also coming under pressure from a sharp drop in in the face of rising interest rates and worsening economic conditions.

Sentiment towards risk-driven assets was also rattled by a slew of Federal Reserve officials warning that the bank could still act further to bring down stubborn inflation. said in separate addresses that interest rates were likely to stay higher for longer, with some officials also raising the possibility of more interest rate hikes.

The and steadied near a one-month high on Tuesday, after logging small losses in the prior session. But the greenback still strengthened against the by about 0.1%.

The dollar moved little this week as markets hunkered down in anticipation of more U.S. economic signals this week, starting with and due later in the day.

Several more Fed speakers are also lined up for the week, most notably on Friday.

show that markets are still positioning for a pause in the Fed’s rate hike cycle in June. But traders are also factoring in a small chance of a 25 basis point hike.

The prospect of U.S. rates remaining higher for longer bodes poorly for Asian currencies, as the gap between risky and low-risk yields narrows.