Dollar Mixed Versus Major Counterparts
The dollar saw mixed results against other majors as traders showed uncertainty over the progress of the economic recovery. Traders considered some Fed speak as well as some key economic news.
Philadelphia Federal Reserve president Charles Plosser told reporters Thursday that he was not surprised by the dollar’s decline, and said that its weak state is a reversal of the run-up after last year’s economic panic.
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the U.S. has a long way to go to ensure a full economic recovery and guarantee that last year’s financial collapse will not happen again in the future.
The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development sharply raised its combined growth forecast for its 30 member nations. But, the global recovery led by China is still too timid to halt the rising unemployment, the think-tank noted.
The dollar gave back modest gains against the euro and moved near 1.4910. The buck had climbed as high as 1.4842.
The greenback rose to a six-day high against the British pound, rising near 1.6650. The buck has been trending up for a few days.
The dollar recouped some of its losses against the yen after hitting a six-week low of 88.63. The buck rebounded near 0.8900.
In economic news, a Labor Department report showed that jobless claims for the week came in at 505,000, unchanged from the previous week’s revised figure. Economists had been expecting jobless claims to edge up to 504,000 from the 502,000 originally reported for the previous week.
A Conference Board report showed that the leading indicators index rose 0.3 percent in October following a 1.0 percent gain in September and a 0.4 percent increase in August. Economists had been expecting the index to increase by 0.4 percent.
The Philly Fed said its index of regional activity in the manufacturing sector rose to 16.7 in November from 11.5 in October, with a positive reading indicating growth in the sector. Economists had been expecting a much more modest increase by the index to 12.2.
