Pacific Exchange Rates Report for March 4th – 8th

By: Khadija Farooqi, The Quinnipiac University Economics Research Team  

Pacific Currencies Index 

Source: Yahoo Finance and own calculations. Exchange rates are inverted to be USD per local currency (i.e., an increase indicates a stronger domestic currency) and then indexed to be 100 at the start of the period.  

Throughout the week of March 4th–8th, currencies exhibited a synchronized pattern against the USD, fluctuating initially before collectively ascending. The Australian dollar (green) led the pack with an initial rise, followed by a minor dip and an impressive 1.8% climb. The South Korean won (red) saw a similar trend, starting with a 0.5% increase, a brief decline, then a notable 0.9% ascent. The New Zealand dollar (blue) experienced a slight rise, followed by a steady decline and a swift 1.5% surge. Similarly, the Japanese yen (maroon) remained steady initially, dipped 0.2%, but rebounded with a matching 1.5% increase later in the week.

Pacific Historical Trends 

Source: Yahoo Finance and own calculations. Exchange rates are inverted to be USD per local currency (i.e., an increase indicates a stronger domestic currency. The center line is a rolling three-month average. The upper and lower boundaries are the average plus and average minus one standard deviation, respectively, for the same three-month period. 

During the week of March 4th–8th, all currencies experienced notable gains. The Japanese yen (JPY) began below the lower bound and rapidly climbed towards the rolling three-month average. Meanwhile, the Australian dollar (AUD) and New Zealand dollar (NZD) both started along the lower threshold before impressively rising above the average. Initially surpassing the lower bound, the South Korean won (KRW) saw a subsequent dip but still ended the week with a smaller increase compared to its counterparts.