USD/SEK off 63-week low on simmering global trade tensions

The USD/SEK currency pair extended a rebound from a 63-week low on Friday amid escalating global trade tensions and concerns over economic outlook.

In the wake of US tariffs on steel and aluminum, the European Union announced plans to impose a 50% tax on American whiskey and other exports next month. In response, US President Trump pledged on Truth Social a 200% tariff on wine and spirit imports from Europe, inducing more volatility across market segments.

In addition, optimism over an imminent ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia seemed to have waned, since Moscow said it supported the US proposal but indicated it would require some considerable reworking.

“I think the million-dollar question with whatever asset class you’re looking at is … where do we start to find the news that’s going to turn around risk sentiment? And at this point in time, it’s not clear,” Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG, was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Meanwhile, the latest US inflation data will probably give the Federal Reserve some room to leave interest rates on hold next week and to monitor the impact of the Trump administration’s trade policy on economy.

Elsewhere, the latest data out of Sweden showed that the jobless rate in the country had risen to 9.4% in February from 8.5% in the same month of 2024.

The number of unemployed persons rose by 53,000 year-on-year to 533,000.

The USD/SEK currency pair was last little changed on the day to trade at 10.1818.