Dollar Slides As U.S. Consumer Inflation Falls
January 11 2019 - 4:50AM
RTTF2
The U.S. dollar was lower against its most major counterparts in
the European session on Friday, as a data showed that the nation's
consumer inflation worsened in December driven by a steep drop in
gasoline prices.
Data from the Labor Department showed that U.S. consumer prices
edged slightly lower in the month of December.
The consumer price index slipped by 0.1 percent in December
after coming in unchanged in November. The slight drop in consumer
prices matched economist estimates.
Excluding food and energy prices, the core consumer price index
rose by 0.2 percent in December, matching the increases seen in the
two previous months as well as expectations.
The data cemented hopes that the Fed will take a pause on rate
hikes in the near future, as remarked by Fed officials, including
Chairman Jerome Powell.
In a speech on Thursday, Powell predicted no recession in 2019
and underscored the message of patience with further interest-rate
hikes.
Fed Vice Chairman Richard Clarida also said the Fed could afford
to take a wait-and-see stance on interest rates if headwinds to the
economy from financial markets or global growth prove
persistent.
The greenback depreciated to 108.15 against the yen, down from a
high of 108.47 touched at 7:45 pm ET. The pair was worth 108.43
when it finished deals on Thursday. On the downside, 106.00 is
possibly seen as the next support level for the greenback.
Data from the Ministry of Finance showed that Japan had a
current account surplus of 757.2 billion yen in November. That
exceeded expectations for a surplus of 566.3 billion yen and was
down from 1,309.9 billion yen in October.
The trade balance reflected a deficit of 559.1 billion yen
versus expectations for a shortfall of 612.6 billion yen, following
the 321.7 billion yen deficit in the previous month.
The greenback fell back to 0.9814 against the Swiss franc, after
rising to 0.9843 at 7:00 pm ET. At yesterday's close, the pair was
worth 0.9843. The next likely support for the greenback is seen
around the 0.97 level.
The greenback remained lower at 1.1543 against the euro,
reversing from a high of 1.1496 seen at 5:45 pm ET. The pair
finished yesterday's trading at 1.1500. The greenback is seen
finding support around the 1.18 level.
The greenback held steady against the pound, after having
dropped to a 1-1/2-month low of 1.2850 at 5:45 am ET. The greenback
had set a 2-day high of 1.2710 against the pound early in the
European session. The pound-greenback pair was quoted at 1.2744 at
yesterday's close.
Data from the Office for National Statistics showed that UK
economic growth improved for a second straight month in November,
led by services and construction growth, and exceeded economists'
expectations.
Gross domestic product grew 0.2 percent from October, when the
economy expanded 0.1 percent. Economists had expected the pace of
growth to remain unchanged. In September, GDP stagnated.
On the flip side, the greenback bounced off to 0.7197 against
the aussie and 0.6816 against the kiwi, from its early more than
4-week low of 0.7235 and more than 3-week low of
0.6844,respectively. The greenback is poised to challenge
resistance around 0.70 against the aussie and 0.66 against the
kiwi.
The greenback appreciated to a 2-day high of 1.3269 against the
loonie, following a decline to a 2-day low of 1.3183 at 4:15 am ET.
Next key resistance for the greenback is possibly seen around the
1.34 level.
The U.S. monthly budget statement for December is scheduled for
release in the New York session.
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