Dollar Retreats After Trump-Inspired Rebound
The dollar fell Friday, as investors continued to sell the battered U.S. currency.
The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against a basket of 16 other currencies, was recently down 0.5% at 83.04.
This week has been a bumpy one for the dollar. The U.S. currency staged a late-day comeback Thursday after President Donald Trump said it would get " stronger," appearing to contradict comments made only the day before by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Mr. Mnuchin's comments on Wednesday brought the dollar to a fresh three-year low.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal on Friday, Mr. Mnuchin said where the dollar goes in the short term is "not a concern of mine one way or the other." In the long run, he reiterated that a stronger dollar "is a sign of the economic success of the U.S."
Still, officials "will now need time to change the prevailing market view that in current circumstances the U.S. would be content with further dollar slippage," said Alan Ruskin, global co-head of FX strategy at Deutsche Bank, in a note to investors.
Friday's losses came despite signs that the U.S. may have entered a period of stronger economic growth.
Gross domestic product rose at a 2.6% annual rate in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said earlier Friday. The number was strong enough to extend one of the economy's best stretches in recent years, although it failed to match the above-3% growth in the spring and summer quarters.
The euro rose 0.3% to $1.2435.
Write to Ira Iosebashvili at ira.iosebashvili@wsj.com
The dollar fell Friday, as investors continued to sell the battered U.S. currency.
The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against a basket of 16 other currencies, was down 0.4% at 83.07. The index fell for the seventh straight week, its longest weekly losing streak since 2010.
This week has been a bumpy one for the dollar. The U.S. currency staged a late-day comeback Thursday after President Donald Trump said it would get " stronger," appearing to contradict comments made only the day before by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Mr. Mnuchin's comments on Wednesday brought the dollar to a fresh three-year low.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal on Friday, Mr. Mnuchin said where the dollar goes in the short term is "not a concern of mine one way or the other." In the long run, he reiterated that a stronger dollar "is a sign of the economic success of the U.S."
Still, officials "will now need time to change the prevailing market view that in current circumstances the U.S. would be content with further dollar slippage," said Alan Ruskin, global co-head of FX strategy at Deutsche Bank, in a note to investors.
Friday's losses came despite signs that the U.S. may have entered a period of stronger economic growth.
Gross domestic product rose at a 2.6% annual rate in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said earlier Friday. The number was strong enough to extend one of the economy's best stretches in recent years, although it failed to match the above-3% growth in the spring and summer quarters.
The euro rose 0.2% to $1.2427.
Write to Ira Iosebashvili at ira.iosebashvili@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 26, 2018 18:13 ET (23:13 GMT)