Trump Appoints Wall Street Giant, U.S. Treasury Yield Drops 13 Basis Points

US President-elect Donald Trump has named veteran Wall Street figure Scott Bessent as his Treasury secretary, a decision that sent the dollar and US Treasury yields significantly lower amid expectations that he will moderate Trump's policy proposals. Crude oil prices also fell, while the euro and Swiss franc both gained as much as 1 percent against the dollar. The Bloomberg dollar spot index fell as much as 0.7 per cent, while the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell 13 basis points to 4.27 per cent.

Karl Schamotta, chief market strategist at Corpay, said financial markets were relieved that Trump chose Bessent to lead the Treasury Department. WTI crude fell 3.1 percent to $68.99 a barrel, weighed down by hints of a possible ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The euro rose 1.1 per cent to a session high of $1.0530, while the dollar fell 1 per cent to a session low of 0.8849 against the Swiss franc.

In other currency pairs, the pound rose 0.4 percent to 1.2577 against the dollar as the Bank of England's deputy governor Clare Lombardelli stressed the need for caution in moving forward with a rate cut policy. Scandinavian currencies strengthened, with both USD/Swedish Krona and USD/Danish Krona down as much as 1%. Nomura analysts pointed out that if the dollar/yen rises in the next 2-3 weeks, it could prompt the Bank of Japan to adopt a more hawkish monetary policy.