MW: Dollar rises as investors shrug off China data
By William L. Watts, MarketWatch
FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) — The U.S. dollar rose against most major rivals Friday, with currency markets showing little reaction to unexpectedly strong Chinese growth.
“The market response toward stronger-than-expected Chinese data was surprisingly muted and there was limited follow-through with risk appetite sluggish,” said Sue Trinh, currency strategist at Royal Bank of Canada.
The ICE dollar index DXY +0.25% , a gauge of the U.S. currency against a basket of six currencies, traded at 79.993 in recent action, up from 79.691 in North American trade late Thursday.
The WSJ Dollar Index XX:BUXX +0.32% , which uses a slightly wider basket, rose 0.20 point to 70.92.
China’s economy posted year-on-year growth of 7.9% in the fourth quarter, topping economists’ forecasts and marking the first time in seven quarters that the world’s second-largest economy picked up speed. See: China’s economy grows more than expected .
Asian equity markets rallied, but Europe saw modest gains and U.S. stock index futures traded near unchanged. U.S. futures remained unchanged following upbeat earnings reports from General Electric Co. GE +3.62% and Morgan Stanley MS +6.75% , with investors seen wary of pushing the market higher a day after the S&P 500 Index SPX +0.56% notched its highest close since 2007. See: Stoc futures flat; GE beats views, UMich awaited .
The euro EURUSD -0.44% fetched $1.3316, down from $1.3376.
Strategists at Lloyds Bank said the lack of significant euro-zone economic data Friday suggested the euro’s recent $1.3260-to-$1.3400 range should hold. But they noted that Fridays often see some position squaring, and warned that “some slippage lower in equities and risk currencies would not be surprising.”
The dollar changed hands at 89.89 Japanese yen USDJPY +0.06% compared with ÂĄ89.98 late Thursday. The euro EURJPY -0.39% fetched ÂĄ119.68, up from ÂĄ119.43.
The British pound GBPUSD -0.43% slipped to $1.5921 from $1.6003.
The Australian dollar AUDUSD -0.31% traded at $1.0517, down from $1.0543.
William L. Watts is MarketWatch's European bureau chief, based in Frankfurt. Follow him on Twitter @wlwatts.
