U.S. Dollar Down Against Majors; New Home Sales In Focus
09:37, 24th October 2014
(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar fell against its major opponents in European deals on Friday, as news of Ebola infection to a doctor in New York caused fears about the widespread outbreak of the disease.
The doctor, who had been in West Africa for treating Ebola patient, returned recently.
The U.S. new home sales for September are due at 10:00 am ET. Economists expect new home sales of 460,000 for the month compared to 504,000 in the previous month.
Market participants awaited the outcome of European stress tests scheduled for Sunday, as well as the policy meetings of the Federal Open Market Committee and the Bank of Japan next week for further direction.
The U.S. weekly jobless claims stood near economists' forecasts for the week ended October 18, data showed yesterday. The greenback lifted up overnight following the data, which also supported expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates sooner rather than later.
The greenback, which climbed to 108.30 against the yen in early Asian deals, pared gains and held steady thereafter. The greenback-yen pair was trading at 108.03, compared to Thursday's closing value of 108.26.
The greenback declined to a 2-day low of 0.9510 against the Swiss franc, retreating from an early high of 0.9545. The next possible downside target for the greenback-franc pair lies around the 0.94 zone.
Pulling away from an early high of 1.2634 against the euro, the greenback hit a 2-day low of 1.2680. If the greenback extends slide, 1.28 is seen as its next support level.
The greenback fell back to 1.6066 against the pound, edging to pierce an early 2-day low. Continuation of downtrend may help the greenback to find support around the 1.615 region.
The U.K. economy grew at a slower pace in the third quarter, preliminary estimates from the Office for National Statistics Office showed.
Gross domestic product climbed 0.7 percent from the second quarter, when it grew 0.9 percent.
The greenback declined to 0.7862 against the NZ dollar, coming off from an early new 2-week high of 0.7792. Next key support for the greenback may be eyed around the 0.81 area.
New Zealand had a merchandise trade deficit of NZ$1,350 million in September, data from Statistics New Zealand showed.
That was well shy of forecasts for a shortfall of NZ$625 million following the NZ$472 million deficit in August.
The greenback that ended yesterday's trading at 1.1228 against the loonie weakened to a 2-day low of 1.1197. Against the aussie, the greenback weakened to 0.8813, off early multi-day high of 0.8718. The greenback is likely to challenge support around 1.11 against the loonie and 0.89 against the aussie.
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