The U.S. Dollar held close to a 1-month peak against its major rivals during Wednesday’s Asian trading session as the result of a strong rebound on the back of unexpectedly improved trade data from the U.S. At the same time, market players sold off their holdings in the Canadian Dollar, also popularly known as the Loonie, on news that the Purchasing Managers Index fell hard last month even as Canada’s trade deficit figures came in larger than anticipated.
As reported at 11:56 a.m. (JST) in Tokyo, the U.S. Dollar Index traded at 80.875 .DXY, edging off the session high of 80.946 .DXY, a level last seen early last month. The EUR/USD pair dipped to $1.3613 from the recently struck peak of $1.3657 while the USD/JPY crept up to 104.69 Yen, moving away from Monday’s 2-week trough. The USD/CAD was a major player in the overnight hours, gaining more than 1% to trade at C$1.0782, a level last seen in the summer of 2010.
Labor Data Release Eyed
The U.S. Dollar could see a great deal of volatility upon the release of Friday’s labor data, while ADP’s data release later today could mildly impact the greenback. Pollsters are predicting that new jobs will have decreased slightly in December, but any downside deviation from that could impact how the Federal Reserve decides on its own plans for reining in its asset purchasing scheme. The Fed’s minute meetings are also due to be released which should provide some clue as to their determination to withdraw stimulus.