The US Dollar was broadly lower in Asian trading on Friday and is poised to close out the week with a decline, especially against the common currency Euro as investors focus on the Eurozone’s renewed economic strength. The Dollar Index, a gauge of the Dollar’s comparative strength, was flat at about 88.659 .DXY, just above last week’s 3-year trough; it is poised to record a 0.4% loss for the week. Investors may be perplexed that the Dollar is struggling given the rise in yields for benchmark US Treasuries, but analysts say that most investors are focusing on the Eurozone. The latest economic data showed manufacturing improving last month, increasing speculation that the European Central Bank could begin to normalize its policy.
As reported at 10:10 am (JST) in Tokyo, the EUR/USD was trading at $1.25, down 0.04%; the pair had earlier hit a peak of $1.25155 before edging lower. The EUR/GBP is trading at 0.8762 Pence, down 0.05%; the pair has ranged from a session trough of 0.87599 Pence to a peak of 0.87723 Pence.
Markets Look to NFP
The Dollar is struggling against the Japanese Yen with the USD/JPY pair holding above last week’s 4-month low. The pair is currently trading at 109.48 Yen, up 0.03%; the pair has ranged from a low of 109.260 Yen to 109.664 Yen. Dollar traders will focus on today’s release of US labor data for January. The latest poll of economists is calling for 180,000 new jobs, up from December’s 148,000. If the NFP report is as upbeat as analysts are predicting then the Federal Reserve could move to raise rates as soon as next month.