Palladium sheds more than 3% as dollar strengthens

Palladium prices fell on Friday, as the US dollar rose against most of its peers, which weighs down on commodities and metals.

Investors eschewed risky assets and turned to safe havens amid uncertainty over the global economy and the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stressed that employment and inflation rates in the US are still far from the Fed's goals.

However, analysts forecast that the ongoing countries efforts to contain coronavirus with disturbing vaccines could speed up the global economy to recovery.

The dollar index rose against a basket of major currencies by 0.4% to 90.5 points as of 14:26 GMT, after hitting a high of 90.7 points and a low of 90.1 points.

Palladium March futures fell 3.2% to $2,330 an ounce, with a high of $2,418 and a low of $2,321.