FED: US TSY 30Y BOND AUCTION: NON-COMP BIDS $62 MLN FROM $25.000 BLN TOTAL

• +50,000 wk1 TY 112 calls, 11 vs. 111-03/0.19%, expire May 1

Axios reports, “The U.S. proposed that Iran accept a 20-year moratorium on uranium enrichment during negotiations in Islamabad over the weekend, according to a U.S. official and a source with knowledge. The Iranians countered with a shorter "single digit" period, according to the sources.”

• The report adds, "The U.S. also asked Iran to remove all highly enriched uranium from the country. The Iranians said they would agreed to a "monitored process of down-blending" it instead, according to the two sources."
• As both sides appear to have offered some flexibility in their original hardline proposals, the report hints at a workable compromise if negotiators can meet for a second round of talks. Ahead of talks, US officials maintained that Iran should comply with Washington's demands for zero enrichment. Iranian officials defended their right to enrich uranium domestically. Both sides appear to have softened on those positions to somewhere close to the proposal Iran was reported to have offered during the Geneva talks in February.
• Axios notes, "Pakistani, Egyptian and Turkish mediators are now trying to bridge the remaining gaps and reach a deal to end the war before the ceasefire ends on April 21. "There is continued engagement between the U.S. and Iran and forward motion on trying to get to an agreement," a US official said."

• Despite the US dollar trading with a positive tone to start the week as the failed talks in the Middle East dented risk sentiment, the DXY has been edging steadily lower throughout the session as equities recovered, which keeps the index’s adjustment at a very modest +0.11%.
• This is perhaps evidence of a couple of things; first of all, the building significance of 100.50 as a resistance cluster for the dollar index and the market’s desire to re-engage with the softer dollar view, or conversely, it is more representative of the direction of travel for FX volatility and the potential waning appetite of currency market participants to take part in the headline/deadline back and forth.
• More positive equity sentiment has allowed the likes of NZD to turn positive on the session, while USDSEK has had a very impressive turnaround, briefly sliding below last Friday’s lows to post an impressive 1.63% intra-day range.
• For NZDUSD specifically, there could be a hint of the hawkish RBNZ angle playing its part from last week as the pair remains 2.8% higher from April’s pullback lows. However, given the weak growth backdrop in New Zealand, we may have to wait for next Tuesday’s first quarter CPI to see whether those RBNZ tightening bets can last. The 100-day EMA for NZDUSD has helped stall topside momentum for now, while AUDNZD found solid support back at 1.20 earlier today.