US dollar higher as traders eye Europe

The US dollar has gained ground against the euro in choppy trade that was dictated by bond action in Europe and data from China and the United States.

"The post-Easter rollercoaster ride continued its head-scratching turns through Friday's Asian and European trading hours, and pushed both the American and Canadian dollars into the green territory against a currency basket," said analysts at Travelex.
By 2100 GMT (0700 AEST) the euro declined to $1.3078 from $1.3188 late in New York on Thursday.
The vagaries of Europe's debt markets, particularly the see-sawing of Italian and Spanish bond prices, again loomed large.
"Sovereign bond yields for both countries are higher, and the euro has so far failed to break back above 1.32 against the US dollar," said David Morrison at the trading group GFT.
"Investors were rattled by the news that Spanish bank borrowing from the European Central Bank rose dramatically last month."
Meanwhile risk was off as slower growth in China eclipsed better-than-expected earnings from two big banks and internet giant Google.
China said on Friday its economy grew by 8.1 per cent in the first three months of 2012, its slowest pace in nearly three years, but analysts forecast a pick-up in the second half of 2012.
The US dollar rose a little against the yen, reaching 80.91 yen against 80.91 yen the day before.
The pound weakened to $1.5844 from $1.5958.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Clinton confronts dissident case ahead of China talks

Image
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in  China  on Wednesday for top-level talks that risk being upstaged by the fate of a blind dissident whose supporters say is under U.S. protection in Beijing after escaping house arrest. Washington has not even commented on the whereabouts of the dissident, legal activist Chen Guangcheng, whose plight has overshadowed the Strategic and Economic Dialogue due to begin on Thursday. The United States hopes the talks will encourage greater Chinese cooperation on trade as well over  Iran , Syria, North Korea and other international disputes. Chen's friends and supporters have said he is probably inside the fortress-like U.S. embassy in northeast Beijing. The official silence about his fate from both Washington and Beijing has shown their eagerness to contain friction over his case. Relations could easily go awry, especially with the ruling Communist Party wrestling with a leadership scandal and a looming power succession. "O
Read more

Euro gains on ECB; stocks up with economic data

Image
The euro rose on Monday on expectations of higher euro-zone interest rates while world stocks eked out gains as concerns about Middle East and Japan cast a cloud despite positive economic data. The euro rose above USD 1.41 after the president European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet said inflation is above the bank's price stability target, adding to expectations that interest rates could rise as early as next month. The European currency erased most of its gains later, however, pressured by worries that the defeat of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's party in a key state election means she will have less leeway to financially support debt-stricken members of the euro zone. Data showing that US consumer spending rose for an eighth straight month rise supported equities. US consumer spending rose slightly more than forecast as households tapped their savings to cover higher food and energy prices, while inflation accelerated at its fastest pace sinc
Read more

The iPhone Almost Had a Physical Keyboard [REPORT]

Image
Apple 's iconic  iPhone  was almost released with a  physical keyboard . Apple reportedly considered the phone design before finally deciding on the handset's touchscreen-only form factor. Tony Fadell , who was previously Senior Vice President of the iPod division of  Apple , talked about the early days of the iPhone during a recording of  On The Verge  Friday. Fadell worked with the company for 18 generations of the iPod and the first 3 generations of the iPhone. In 2010, he started his own company,  Nest , which makes smart thermostats. [More from  Mashable :  FaceVault App Brings Facial Recognition to iOS [VIDEO] ] According to Fadell there were three versions of the iPhone in the works: an “iPod + iPhone, a device called the  iPhone , and then finally the iPhone we know and love that was released in 2007. Fadell, who worked on the iPhone through the iPhone 3GS said he was personally in favor of the touchscreen-only design. While Apple was a pioneer in iPhone&
Read more