Forex

As Dollar Bets Fade, Hedging Hits 2-Year High — ETFs Emerge As Key Trade

Chandrima Sanyal — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 19:52:53 +0000

Institutional investors are dialing back bullish bets on the greenback, and that shift is poised to reflect in ETF positioning.

According to Business Times, State Street found that investors have raised dollar hedge ratios to their highest level in two years, while options markets show the least bullish stance on the currency in weeks.

This comes as the dollar's safe-haven appeal begins to fade alongside easing geopolitical tensions and a pickup in global risk appetite. The U.S. Dollar Index has already slipped in recent weeks, reflecting the early stages of this rotation.

The Invesco DB U.S. Dollar Index Bearish Fund (NYSE:UDN) is one such product poised to gain relevance now as it offers direct exposure to a declining dollar. Similarly, the WisdomTree Emerging Currency Strategy Fund (NYSE:CEW) can also benefit because of its exposure to emerging market currencies, which tend to perform well against a depreciating dollar.

Beyond currency ETFs, we are witnessing renewed investor interest in global equity ETFs like the Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (NASDAQ:VXUS) and the Vanguard FTSE ...

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Stock Market Today: Wall Street Set To Extend Rally As Trump Says Iran War May End 'Pretty Soon'— Netflix, State Street, Truist In Focus (UPDATED)

Eva Mathew — Fri, 17 Apr 2026 12:36:16 +0000

(Editor’s note: The futures moves, ETFs data and the stocks in focus section were updated to include the latest information)

U.S. stock futures moved higher early Friday, as investors built on recent optimism that tensions in the Middle East may be easing.

President Donald Trump said the Iran war "should be ending pretty soon," describing developments as "going along swimmingly" during remarks in Las Vegas on Thursday. The comments followed the announcement of a temporary ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon.

Recent optimism around a potential peace deal has lifted equities, putting all three major indexes on track for weekly gains. The Dow is up about 1.4%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq have advanced roughly 3.3% and 5.2%, respectively.

Investors will also watch earnings from financial firms on Friday, including State Street (NYSE:STT), Truist Financial Corp (NYSE:TFC) and Fifth Third Bancorp (NYSE:FITB).

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.305%, and the two-year bond was at 3.773%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 99.5% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged in its April meeting.

Index	Performance (+/-)
Dow Jones	0.57%
S&P 500	0.39%
Nasdaq 100	0.39%
Russell 2000	0.56%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket trading on Thursday. The SPY was up 0.57% at $705.64, while the QQQ gained 0.62% to $644.41.

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Stock Market Today: S&P 500, Nasdaq Futures Rise As Trump Says Iran War May End 'Within Two Weeks'— Nike, RH, nCino, Beyond Meat In Focus (UPDATED)

Rishabh Mishra — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 13:01:50 +0000

(Editor’s note: The future prices of benchmark tracking ETFs, the lede, the economic data and the headline were updated in the story.)

U.S. retail and food services sales for February 2026 rose by 0.6% to $738.4 billion, slightly rebounding from a revised 0.1% dip in January. When excluding motor vehicles and parts, retail sales grew by 0.5% during the month.

Meanwhile, the labor market showed steady but modest growth in March, with private sector employment increasing by 62,000 jobs and annual pay rising 4.5% year-over-year, according to the ADP National Employment Report.

In the latest on the U.S.-Iran war, President Donald Trump said the U.S. could end its military campaign “within two or three weeks,” noting that Iran would not need to agree to any terms for the withdrawal to proceed.

Additionally, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that Iran is open to ending hostilities, but only if it receives formal security guarantees against future attacks.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump is scheduled to deliver a televised Address to the Nation on Wednesday at 9:00 p.m. ET to provide an important update on the situation with Iran.

Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.27%, and the two-year bond was at 3.76%. The CME Group's FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 99.5% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged in its April meeting.

Index	Performance (+/-)
Dow Jones	0.52%
S&P 500	0.50%
Nasdaq 100	0.72%
Russell 2000	0.70%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were higher in premarket on Wednesday. The SPY was up 0.62% at $654.39, while the QQQ advanced 0.93% to $582.55.

Stocks In Focus

Nike

Nike Inc. (NYSE:NKE) dropped 9.31% in premarket on Wednesday despite reporting better-than-expected third-quarter results amid a turnaround strategy.

Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that NKE maintains a weak price trend in the short, medium, and ...

Full story available on Benzinga.com