FOREX-Dollar nurses losses as U.S. economic doubts undercut rally

Reuters · 02/08/2021 00:22
FOREX-Dollar nurses losses as U.S. economic doubts undercut rally

Graphic: World FX rates https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E

Jobs data takes shine off dollar rebound

Investors looking to U.S. CPI, timing of stimulus

Ethereum falls in spot market as traders eye futures debut

By Stanley White

- The dollar nursed losses against most currencies on Monday as disappointing U.S. jobs data caused some investors to scale back bets on a rebound in the greenback.

The euro held gains versus the dollar but faces a test later on Monday with data that is expected to show German industrial output growth slowed at the end of last year.

Speculators have been reducing short positions in the dollar, but some analysts say better U.S. economic data and continued progress in fighting the coronavirus pandemic will be needed for further dollar gains.

"Soft non-farm payrolls has really pulled the ladder out from under the dollar," said Yukio Ishizuki, foreign exchange strategist at Daiwa Securities.

"Now the markets are questioning whether the dollar can rise any further. A lot depends on the coronavirus, but we also need to know when U.S. fiscal stimulus will pass."

Against the euro EUR=D3, the dollar traded at $1.2048 after a 0.7% slump on Friday.

The British pound GBP=D3 bought $1.3736, close to an almost three-year high.

The dollar was quoted at 105.38 yen JPY=D3, having pulled back from a three-month high reached on Friday.

The U.S. economy created fewer jobs than expected in January while job losses the previous month were deeper than initially reported, data at the end of last week showed. nL1N2KA34D

The release of U.S. consumer prices and consumer sentiment later this week will help determine whether a recent rise in inflation expectations and Treasury yields was justified.

Any disappointing numbers from either report could knock the dollar lower, some analysts warn.

The dollar index =USD against a basket of six major currencies stood at 91.084, nursing a 0.6% loss from Friday.

Speculators' net bearish bets on the dollar fell to $29.95 billion for the week ended Feb. 2, compared with a net short position of $33.81 billion for the previous week, according to calculations by Reuters and U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data. nL1N2KB2NJ

In the cryptocurrency market, ethereum ETH=BTSP fell 3.88% to $1,615, extending a pullback from a record high ahead of the listing of ethereum futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. nL1N2KA2ER

Bitcoin BTH=BTSP, the most popular cryptocurrency, fell 0.88% to $38,936.

Elsewhere, the Australian dollar AUD=D3 held steady at $0.7678. Across the Tasman Sea, the New Zealand dollar NZD=D3 edged up to $0.7209.


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Currency bid prices at 2358 GMT

Description

RIC

Last

U.S. Close
Previous
Session

Pct Change

YTD Pct
Change

High Bid

Low Bid

Euro/Dollar

EUR=EBS

$1.2048

$1.2050

-0.02%

-1.39%

+1.2060

+1.2032

Dollar/Yen

JPY=D3

105.3800

105.3550

+0.05%

+2.05%

+105.4250

+105.4050

Euro/Yen

EURJPY=

126.98

126.93

+0.04%

+0.04%

+127.0600

+126.8700

Dollar/Swiss

CHF=EBS

0.8990

0.8986

+0.00%

+1.57%

+0.8992

+0.8986

Sterling/Dollar

GBP=D3

1.3736

1.3736

+0.00%

+0.54%

+1.3738

+1.3712

Dollar/Canadian

CAD=D3

1.2759

1.2757

+0.02%

+0.20%

+1.2765

+1.2750

Aussie/Dollar

AUD=D3

0.7678

0.7679

+0.03%

-0.16%

+0.7682

+0.7660

NZ Dollar/Dollar

NZD=D3

0.7209

0.7194

+0.25%

+0.43%

+0.7212

+0.7175










All spots FX=

Tokyo spots AFX=

Europe spots EFX=

Volatilities FXVOL=

Tokyo Forex market info from BOJ TKYFX


(Reporting by Stanley White; Editing by Sam Holmes)

((stanley.white@tr.com; +81 (0)3 4563 2799; twitter.com/stanleywhite1 ;))