CONVEX
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▍ STATISTICAL PROJECTION · YEAR-END 2026

Based on current macro regime conditions and em dollar index's historical behaviour in similar regimes, the model projects 128.98 by 2026-12-31 ( +1.1% from 127.59 today). The 68% confidence range is 123.74 to 134.22; the wider 95% range is 118.72 to 139.25. Methodology below the headline.

Central Estimate
128.98
+1.1% vs current 127.59
68% Range (±1σ)
123.74 to 134.22
95% Range (±1.96σ)
118.72 to 139.25
Blended from 4 regime anchors· sample-weighted
VIX · Normal (15-25)
+2.1%n=2,444 · w=39%
10Y-2Y Yield Curve · Flat (0-100bps)
+0.3%n=1,874 · w=30%
HY OAS Spread · Tight (<350bps)
+2.2%n=913 · w=15%
Trade-Weighted Dollar · Weak (bottom tercile)
+2.8%n=1,010 · w=16%
METHOD: CENTRAL = SAMPLE-WEIGHTED MEAN OF PER-ANCHOR CURRENT-REGIME 1Y AVERAGES, SCALED TO 164-DAY HORIZON. BAND = ±σ√T USING 5.1% ANNUALIZED REALIZED VOL.
EXPECTED TO BE 128.98 BY 2026-12-31 (HIGHER FROM 127.59 ON 2026-05-08). NOT INVESTMENT ADVICE.
▍ MODEL · STATISTICAL FORECAST · 2026

EM Dollar Index Forecast 2026

Quantitative analysis from 5,102 observations of EM Dollar Index history, joined to four universal macro regime classifications. Numbers are computed, not narrated.

ByConvex Research Desk·Edited byBen Bleier·
DTWEXEMEGS · LAST
127.59
AS OF 2026-05-08
Percentile · 25Y History
82.6th
▍ HEADLINE SIGNAL · NEUTRAL DIVERGENCE
Hist. Avg +252d
+2.8%
vs +1.2% unconditional · +1.6%pp above
When Trade-Weighted Dollar sits in its Weak (bottom tercile) regime — as it does today (118.04) — EM Dollar Index has historically returned an average of +2.76% over the next 252 trading days, 1.6pp above the all-history average of +1.16%. Sample: 1,010 observations, 65.4% hit rate.
METHOD: PERCENTILE-RANK MATCHED, LOOK-AHEAD-BIAS-FREE·NOT A FORECAST·HISTORICAL CONDITIONAL AVERAGE

Regime Scan[01/04]

VIX
Normal (15-25)
+2.1%+1Y AVG
Δ +0.9%pp · n=2,444
10Y-2Y Yield Curve
Flat (0-100bps)
+0.3%+1Y AVG
Δ -0.8%pp · n=1,874
HY OAS Spread
Tight (<350bps)
+2.2%+1Y AVG
Δ +1.1%pp · n=913
Trade-Weighted Dollar
Weak (bottom tercile)
+2.8%+1Y AVG
Δ +1.6%pp · n=1,010

Δ = divergence from +1.2% unconditional all-history average

Performance by Window[02]

WINDOWNANN RETANN VOLRET/VOLHIT %TOTAL
1Y251-5.00%3.90%-1.2848.4%-4.99%
3Y7510.53%4.82%0.1148.3%1.59%
5Y1,2510.92%4.80%0.1948.2%4.68%
10Y2,4960.91%5.18%0.1847.7%9.45%
All5,1021.16%5.09%0.2347.9%26.40%

Annualized total return = (1 + total)^(1/years) - 1. Ret/Vol is the annualized return divided by annualized volatility (Sharpe-equivalent without risk-free subtraction). Hit % = pct of single periods that were positive.

Where We Are Now[03]

Percentile Rank
82.6th
89.15median 114.45139.99
Current value 127.5879 on a 5,102-observation history going back to Jul 25, 2008.
Volatility Regime
normal
5.20%REALIZED 30D ANN
Sits at the 69.0th percentile vs full history. Median 4.38%.

Forward Returns by Macro Regime[04]

How EM Dollar Index has performed historically conditional on the prevailing macro regime. The current bucket is highlighted; +1Y averages drive the headline signal above.

VIX
Volatility regime: Low (<15), Normal (15-25), Elevated (25-40), Extreme (>40)
CURRENT: 17.26 Normal (15-25)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Low (<15)1,7390.45%1.32%2.63%3.17%64.7%
Normal (15-25)2,4440.11%0.46%2.05%1.58%64.4%
Elevated (25-40)696-0.36%-0.88%-0.81%-2.20%31.0%
Extreme (>40)1780.35%-1.05%-5.46%-6.02%6.2%
10Y-2Y Yield Curve
Yield curve regime: Inverted (<0bps), Flat (0-100bps), Steep (>100bps)
CURRENT: 0.50 Flat (0-100bps)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Inverted (<0bps)777-0.03%-0.00%0.31%-0.52%46.6%
Flat (0-100bps)1,8740.09%0.33%0.35%0.25%52.0%
Steep (>100bps)2,4080.29%0.84%2.81%2.51%65.0%
HY OAS Spread
Credit regime: Tight (<350bps), Normal (350-500bps), Stressed (>500bps)
CURRENT: 2.76 Tight (<350bps)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Tight (<350bps)9130.41%0.90%2.21%3.22%70.2%
Normal (350-500bps)1,3560.18%0.80%2.36%1.97%70.4%
Stressed (>500bps)5490.10%0.13%0.17%-0.52%46.4%
Trade-Weighted Dollar
Dollar regime: bottom/middle/top tercile of trailing 5Y rolling distribution
CURRENT: 118.04 Weak (bottom tercile)
REGIME BUCKETN+30D+90D+1Y AVG+1Y MEDHIT %
Weak (bottom tercile)1,0100.16%0.68%2.76%2.08%65.4%
Neutral (middle)1,2330.05%0.26%1.13%1.49%60.8%
Strong (top tercile)2,6090.26%0.70%1.80%1.43%58.8%

Forward returns are forward-looking from each historical observation in the bucket; +252d corresponds to one trading year. Buckets with fewer than 5 forward-return observations are reported as n/a. These are conditional historical averages, not forecasts.

Lead-Lag Relationships[05]

For each universally-recognised leading indicator, the lag at which the daily-return correlation peaks. Positive lag means the anchor leads EM Dollar Index; negative means it lags.

ANCHORROLEPEAK LAGPEAK CORRZERO-LAGRELATIONSHIP
Trade-Weighted DollarFX driver0d0.8430.843coincident
CopperGlobal growth proxy0d-0.413-0.413coincident
HY OAS SpreadCredit risk leader0d0.4050.405coincident
VIXVolatility leader0d0.3180.318coincident
Baa-10Y SpreadCredit risk (slow)0d0.1320.132weak
Initial Jobless ClaimsLabor leader-7d0.1280.099weak
10Y Treasury YieldDiscount-rate driver0d-0.125-0.125weak
NFCIFinancial conditions-56d0.0410.004weak
10Y-2Y Yield SpreadRecession leader+38d-0.0380.002weak
U-Mich Consumer SentimentSurvey leader0d0.0000.000weak

Pearson correlation of daily returns over up to 25 years of overlapping history, searched across a ±60-day lag grid. Indicators classified as “weak” don't have meaningful predictive power at daily resolution; many of these (yield curve, NFCI, sentiment) lead at monthly/quarterly horizons instead.

Historical Analogs[06]

Periods where EM Dollar Index sat at a similar percentile rank to today, with what happened over the next 30 / 90 / 252 trading days. Analogs are clustered to avoid double-counting nearby dates.

DATEVALUE+30D+90D+1Y
Aug 1, 2023124.76662.00%2.11%6.83%
Apr 13, 2022123.46162.27%5.11%2.08%
Sep 15, 2021122.93210.73%1.61%6.81%
Jun 16, 2021121.94180.83%1.42%5.17%
Feb 16, 2021122.38232.09%0.68%1.02%

Worst Historical Drawdown[07]

-17.63%PEAK-TO-TROUGH
Peak Mar 2, 2009 → trough Jul 26, 2011. Recovered to prior peak on Jul 30, 2015 (1,465 days).
All-time high: 139.9892 on Apr 9, 2025 · Current DD from ATH: -8.86%

Cross-Asset Correlations · 1Y[08]

S&P 500
-0.385
n=240
Nasdaq 100
-0.367
n=240
20Y Treasury
-0.162
n=240
Gold
-0.372
n=240
Bitcoin
-0.215
n=242

Largest Single-Period Moves[09]

▲ Up
  • Oct 8, 20082.98%
  • Oct 6, 20082.24%
  • Mar 12, 20202.18%
  • Nov 9, 20162.06%
  • Oct 22, 20081.85%
▼ Down
  • Oct 14, 2008-2.26%
  • Oct 9, 2008-2.07%
  • Mar 26, 2020-1.86%
  • Mar 17, 2016-1.75%
  • Dec 11, 2008-1.44%

Calendar-Month Seasonality[10]

Average single-period return aggregated by the calendar month in which the period ended.

MONTHAVG RETURNHIT %N
January-0.01%46.1%423
February0.01%46.2%398
March-0.01%46.9%458
April-0.01%44.0%450
May0.02%49.4%433
June0.00%49.8%424
July-0.01%44.8%426
August0.04%53.3%443
September0.02%48.7%411
October0.01%49.4%425
November0.02%51.1%393
December-0.01%45.6%417

N = 5,102 OBS · GENERATED 2026-05-18 11:00Z

Forecast Approach

scenario weighted: We aggregate probability-weighted outcomes across active tracked scenarios, each with historical base rates and current heat scores. The projection above is the sample-weighted central estimate across current macro regime anchors; the scenario list below adds qualitative context.

Consensus source: Forward rates

Key Drivers & Risks

  • Rate differentials
  • Trade balances
  • Capital flows
  • Risk appetite
  • Central bank policy

Historical Volatility

Moderate: 10-15% annual range for DXY

Scenarios That Affect This Forecast

Frequently Asked Questions

What factors could push EM Dollar Index higher?

The primary drivers that tend to lift EM Dollar Index depend on the current macro regime. The dollar is the single largest macro variable for cross-asset returns. A rising dollar tightens global financial conditions, pressures emerging-market funding, and compresses commodity prices denominated in USD. Real effective exchange rates strip out inflation differentials, revealing whether a currency is genuinely appreciating or just keeping pace with domestic price levels. Convex tracks these drivers live across the FX & Dollar category and flags when multiple forces align in the same direction. See the "Key Drivers & Risks" section on this page for the current list, and check the regime dashboard for how the macro backdrop is currently tilted.

What factors could push EM Dollar Index lower?

The same transmission channels that drive EM Dollar Index higher operate in reverse when conditions flip. The risk drivers listed above map directly to scenarios that, if triggered, would pull this metric in the opposite direction. Convex aggregates these into a scenario-weighted probability distribution rather than a point forecast, so the magnitude depends on which scenarios activate.

Where does consensus see EM Dollar Index heading?

Rather than publish a point target that goes stale the day after release, Convex assembles consensus from the macro regime classification, active scenario probabilities, and historical base rates. Point forecasts from banks and strategists are worth reading for context, but they typically cluster around the consensus and miss the tail events that actually move markets. The scenario-weighted approach here captures that tail risk explicitly.

What is the historical range for EM Dollar Index?

Historical ranges for EM Dollar Index vary dramatically by regime. A level that is extreme in Goldilocks can be routine in Stagflation, and vice versa. The Historical Volatility section on this page describes the typical range and regime-specific behavior. For the full multi-decade history, visit the EM Dollar Index chart page, which includes selectable time ranges up to five years and downloadable data.

How often is the EM Dollar Index forecast updated?

This forecast page recalculates whenever the underlying data or regime classification changes, typically within hours of new data releases. The scenario probabilities refresh daily as the macro state is regenerated. Specific drivers listed on this page reflect the current state of the Convex regime engine, not static historical assumptions.

Is this forecast actionable for trading?

Convex forecasts are informational and educational. They describe probability distributions and regime-conditional paths rather than specific entry and exit levels. Traders and portfolio managers use them alongside other inputs including position sizing rules, risk management, and their own conviction calibration. They are not investment advice.

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Forecasts are model-based projections derived from current regime classification, scenario probabilities, and historical patterns. They are not investment advice. All investments involve risk.