The US Dollar inched higher against safe haven currencies in Tuesday trade in London as FX traders look optimistically toward a Donald Trump speech later today wherein he is believed likely to postpone tariffs on autos exported from the European Union. Trump is also expected to discuss trade policy and markets will listen for clues regarding the administration’s long-running US-Sino trade rift with talk of any progress in the so-called “phase one” trade deal.
As of 11:12 am in London, the USD/JPY was trading at 109.2080 Yen, a gain of 0.1394% and sliding off the earlier peak of 109.298 Yen. The USD/CHF was trading at 0.9964 Swiss Francs, up 0.3131%; the pair has ranged from 0.99284 Swiss Francs to 0.99650 Swiss Francs in today's session.
Jobs Data Sends Pound Lower
In the UK, markets were hopeful that today's labor figures would help in their determination of the likely next step of the bank of England. However, with the exception of a decline in the ILO Unemployment Rate, the news was generally disappointing, The Office of National Statistics reported that the Claimant Count Rate edged higher to 3.4% from 3.3% in October, while the change jumped from 13,500 claims in the previous reading (which was revised down) to 33,000 claims, against an expected 21,300. The average earnings excluding bonus was lower; economists had predicted it would be flat at 3.8% but the report shows a fall to 3.6%. The GBP/USD was lower after the news, trading down at $1.2829, a loss of 0.1914% and sliding from the posted session high of $1.28690