US Dollar Edges Down Further Against Major Rivals
The US dollar traded lower against major opponents after the releasing of GDP data in New York morning trading on Friday. The greenback dropped to a record low against the Swiss franc, a 2-day low versus the euro, a new multi-week low against the pound and a fresh multi-month low versus the yen.
The U.S. economy grew at a slower rate than expected in the second quarter of 2011, with estimates of first quarter growth also revised down sharply, according to figures released by the Commerce Department.
U.S. gross domestic product grew at a 1.3 percent annual rate for the second quarter of 2011. Most economists had predicted a somewhat more robust, 1.9 percent growth in GDP, and the figures released Friday will likely do little to calm concerns about a slowing economic recovery.
Revised figures for the first quarter of 2011 show much slower growth than initially estimated, with the GDP rising just 0.4 percent. The revision, according to the Commerce Department, is a reflection of slower inventory investment and higher rates of imports.
The greenback that hit an 8-day high of 1.4231 versus the euro in late European session, edged down thereafter and fell to a 2-day ow of 1.4414 by about 11:20 am ET. As of now, the pair is worth 1.4388.
Against its British counterpart, the US dollar declined in today’s New York morning from previous session’s 8-day high of 1.6264. At present, the greenback is trading near a fresh multi- week low of 1.6473 versus the sterling, compared to yesterday’s close of 1.6376.
Extending its previous session’s downtrend, the dollar declined further against the Swiss franc in morning deals today. At 11:00 am ET, the greenback dropped to a fresh record low of 0.7856 versus the franc, compared to 0.8014 hit late New York Thursday. Currently, the pair is worth 0.7877.
The US currency that closed Thursday’s New York session at 77.70 versus the Japanese yen, traded lower further and touched a new multi-month low of 77.03 at around 10:00 am ET. Presently, the greenback is trading near 77.20 versus the yen.
