Euro Heads for Weekly Gains as U.S. Dollar Weakens
Investing.com - The euro was on track for its biggest weekly rise in four months on Friday as the U.S. dollar weakened on signs that the Federal Reserve could slow down the pace of interest rate hikes.
EUR/USD jumped 0.23% to 1.1524 as of 5:30 AM ET (10:30 AM ET), pushed higher by the falling greenback. Still, the single currency remains under pressure due to weak economic data and expectations the European Central Bank will keep rates low in 2019.
"The euro remains supported by the soft dollar story. The risk of a short squeeze perhaps to the $1.1620/ area remains," said Chris Turner, head of foreign exchange at ING in London.
The U.S. dollar was pushed lower on Thursday after Fed Chairman Jerome Powell restated that the central bank will evaluate the economy before making any decisions on monetary policy.
“We have the ability to be patient and watch patiently and carefully as we watch the economy evolve,” Powell said in prepared remarks on Thursday at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, fell 0.19% to 94.93.
Elsewhere, the pound inched up despite Brexit uncertainty. GBP/USD rose 0.15% to 1.2765.
The Australian dollar increased, with AUD/USD rising 0.6% to 0.7227 and NZD/USD up 0.8% to 0.6835.
-Reuters contributed to this report.
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