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Dollar Surges as Jobless Claims Data Bolsters Case for Fed to Pause Rate Hikes


The U.S. dollar rose against a basket of major currencies on Thursday, after recent jobless claims data strengthened the case for the Federal Reserve to halt interest rate hikes, but kept a high bar for a year-end cuts.

The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits jumped last week to the highest level since late 2021, suggesting that higher interest rates were starting to weigh on the labor market.

The labor market remains tight, with 1.6 job openings for every unemployed person in March, well above the 1.0-1.2 range that is consistent with a jobs market that is not generating too much inflation.

U.S. producer prices, on the other hand, showed a moderate rise last month, posting the smallest annual increase in producer inflation in more than two years, further evidence that inflation pressures were easing.

The producer price index for final demand rose 0.2% last month. In the 12 months through April, the PPI increased 2.3%. That was the smallest year-on-year rise since January 2021 and followed a 2.7% advance in March.

“For the dollar, I don’t think it meaningfully alters what’s already baked in,” said Joe Manimbo, senior market analyst, at Convera in Washington. “I think there’s a strong conviction that the Fed will pause rate hikes. But at the same time, we’re not seeing an airtight case for rate cuts to materialize by the end of the year.”

The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. currency against six major peers, was at 101.92, up 0.7%

Sterling, which earlier trimmed declines after the Bank of England raised interest rates for the 12th consecutive time, was down 0.8% at $1.2522.

The euro, which slipped to a three-week low following Chinese data showing more evidence of weakness in its post-COVID recovery, was last seen at $1.0904, down 0.6%.

“The dollar’s recovery remains intact as China weakness and the Bank of England’s cautious rate guidance overshadow signs of the U.S. labor market losing steam and inflation continuing to moderate,” said Manimbo.

Fed funds futures traders are pricing in a pause before expected rate cuts in September. The Fed’s target range stands at 5% to 5.25%.

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Currency bid prices at 9:22AM (1322 GMT)

Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid

Previous Change

Session

Dollar index 101.9200 101.4100 +0.51% -1.517% +101.9700 +101.3000

Euro/Dollar $1.0919 $1.0983 -0.58% +1.90% +$1.0998 +$1.0913

Dollar/Yen 134.0350 134.3900 -0.24% +2.26% +134.8350 +133.7350

Euro/Yen 146.35 147.57 -0.83% +4.32% +147.5900 +146.1900

Dollar/Swiss 0.8933 0.8898 +0.39% -3.39% +0.8950 +0.8889

Sterling/Dollar $1.2545 $1.2627 -0.65% +3.73% +$1.2640 +$1.2542

Dollar/Canadian 1.3456 1.3372 +0.64% -0.68% +1.3458 +1.3366

Aussie/Dollar $0.6714 $0.6779 -0.97% -1.53% +$0.6796 +$0.6712

Euro/Swiss 0.9752 0.9771 -0.19% -1.45% +0.9782 +0.9747

Euro/Sterling 0.8702 0.8697 +0.06% -1.61% +0.8705 +0.8663

NZ $0.6327 $0.6368 -0.63% -0.35% +$0.6384 +$0.6326

Dollar/Dollar

Dollar/Norway 10.5980 10.5020 +0.84% +7.91% +10.6040 +10.4750

Euro/Norway 11.5757 11.5206 +0.48% +10.31% +11.5856 +11.4795

Dollar/Sweden 10.2859 10.2080 +0.12% -1.17% +10.2902 +10.2077

Euro/Sweden 11.2278 11.2141 +0.12% +0.70% +11.2482 +11.2027

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)



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