Dollar Mixed After U.S. Retail Sales Data
September 14 2018 - 5:23AM
RTTF2
The U.S. dollar was trading mixed against its major counterparts
in the European session on Friday, after a data showed that U.S
retail sales rose much less than expected in the month of
August.
Data from the Commerce Department showed that the U.S. retail
sales inched up by 0.1 percent in August after climbing by an
upwardly revised 0.7 percent in July.
Economists had expected retail sales to rise by 0.4 percent
compared to the 0.5 percent increase originally reported for the
previous month.
Excluding the decrease in auto sales, retail sales rose by 0.3
percent in August after jumping by an upwardly revised 0.9 percent
in July.
Ex-auto sales had been expected to climb by 0.5 percent compared
to the 0.6 percent growth originally reported for the previous
month.
Data from the Labor Department showed that U.S. import prices
fell much more than expected in the month of August.
The Labor Department said import prices dropped by 0.6 percent
in August after edging down by a revised 0.1 percent in July.
Economists had expected import prices to dip by 0.2 percent
compared to the unchanged reading originally reported for the
previous month.
The currency showed mixed trading against its major rivals in
the Asian session. While it fell against the franc and the pound,
it held steady against the euro and the franc.
The greenback dropped to a 1-1/2-month low of 1.3143 against the
pound, from a high of 1.3083 hit at 7:45 am ET. The greenback is
poised to find support around the 1.33 mark.
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said the appropriate policy
response to Brexit is not automatic.
The central bank is well-prepared for whatever path the economy
takes, including a wide range of potential Brexit outcomes, Carney
said in Dublin.
Having fallen to more than a 2-week low of 1.1722 against the
euro at 4:00 am ET, the greenback reversed direction and climbed to
1.1672. On the upside, 1.15 is possibly seen as the next resistance
level for the greenback.
Data from Eurostat showed that the euro area trade surplus
declined to the lowest level in four years in July.
The trade surplus fell to a seasonally adjusted EUR 12.76
billion from EUR 16.47 billion in June. This was the lowest since
June 2014, when the surplus totaled EUR 12.22 billion.
The greenback bounced off to 0.9658 against the franc, from a
5-month low of 0.9635 touched at 4:15 am ET. The greenback is seen
finding resistance around the 0.98 level.
The greenback recovered to 112.03 against the yen, just few pips
short of a 1-1/2-month high of 112.08 hit at 8:45 pm ET. Next key
resistance for the greenback is seen around the 113.00 region.
The U.S. industrial production for August, business inventories
for July and University of Michigan's preliminary consumer
sentiment index for September are scheduled for release
shortly.
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