Thursday, July 31, 2025

The Truth Banishes Fear!

Charted: The U.S. Dollar Against Major Currencies in 2024

The New Diplomat
Writer

Ad

The 25 Richest Countries in the World (Depending on What’s Measured)

Key Takeaways Luxembourg’s immense output per person ($141K GDP per capita) masks much of its non-resident workers. Qatar’s oil windfall lifts GDP per capita ($72K) but that hasn’t spread into broader wealth, unlike Australia or Belgium. English-speaking countries translate middling GDP per capita into high median wealth through property ownership and strong pension systems. Generating…

Oil Prices Climb as U.S. and EU Reach Historic Tariff Agreement

The United States and European Union officially reached a tariff agreement on Sunday, averting a potentially crippling transatlantic trade war. Following months of contentious negotiations, U.S. President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the deal at Trump’s Turnberry golf resort in Scotland.   The announcement sent oil prices higher on…

Tinubu Names Olumode Samuel Adeyemi as New Federal Fire Service Chief

By Hamilton Nwosu  President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has appointed Deputy Controller-General (DCG) Olumode Samuel Adeyemi as the new Controller-General of the Federal Fire Service (FFS), effective August 14, 2025.   The announcement was made in a statement by the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB), signed by its secretary, Abdulmalik Jibrin.  …

Ad

In 2024, many currency pairs fell to unexpected lows amid a strong U.S. dollar—including the euro falling to near parity.

This reflected America’s economic strength against the backdrop of sluggish eurozone growth and subdued economic activity in China. Adding to this, President Trump’s return to the White House spurred a dollar rally given the impact of proposed tariffs and renewed optimism about the U.S. economy.

This graphic shows the performance of major currencies against the U.S. dollar in 2024, based on data from TradingView.

Global Currency Returns in 2024

Below, we show how the vast majority of major currencies weakened against the dollar in 2024 amid elevated U.S. interest rates:

Country Currency 2024 Return
🇺🇸 U.S. U.S. Dollar Index 7.1%
🇬🇧 Great Britain Great British Pound -1.7%
🇲🇽 Mexico Mexican Peso -2.0%
🇨🇳 China Chinese Yuan -2.8%
🇮🇳 India Indian Rupee -2.8%
🇿🇦 South Africa South African Rand -3.7%
🇪🇺 Eurozone Euro -6.2%
🇨🇭 Switzerland Swiss Franc -7.3%
🇨🇦 Canada Canadian Dollar -7.9%
🇦🇺 Australia Australian Dollar -9.1%
🇯🇵 Japan Japanese Yen -10.3%
🇳🇿 New Zealand New Zealand Dollar -11.4%
🇰🇷 South Korea South Korean Won -12.4%
🇷🇺 Russia Russian Ruble -18.6%
🇧🇷 Brazil Brazilian Real -21.6%

As one of the top-performing currencies against the dollar, the pound fell 1.7% in 2024 given a resilient UK economy.

Expectations surrounding UK and U.S. interest rates largely moved in tandem over the year, which also limited divergences between the two currencies. This is because bond yields typically influence demand for currencies with similar risk and return characteristics.

Meanwhile, the Canadian dollar sank to a multi-year low of $0.69 USD in December amid looming tariffs. As one of America’s largest trading partners, Canada’s dollar has weakened notably in recent months ahead of a potential 25% tariff on exports, with energy commodities making up the majority of Canada’s trade surplus.

When it comes to one of the worst-performing major currencies, the Brazilian real sank to historic lows against the U.S. dollar in 2024 amid investor concerns of a rapidly widening government deficit and stubbornly high inflation.

Looking ahead, the real is expected to remain under pressure amid unsustainable public debt and tight credit conditions. In December, the Brazilian central bank raised interest rates to 12.25% in efforts to curb inflation, and some estimates predict it could jump to 14.25% by March, reaching an eight-year high.

Ad

X whatsapp