ON: Dollar Hits Intra-Day High Vs Euro After US Data
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--The dollar jumped to an intra-day high versus the euro and yen Thursday morning in New York after U.S. retail sales data that came in marginally below expectations.
The data could suggest a tougher road ahead Thursday for U.S. equity markets, which may damp risk appetite and reduce investors' buying of currencies that offer higher yields than the greenback.
The report by the Commerce Department showed a 0.5% increase in retail sales, just missing economists' expectations of a 0.6% increase.
Still, the dollar's gains have been relatively mild and trading continues to fluctuate. Investors are skeptical of buying greenbacks amid two factors that have the potential to be very bearish for the dollar: higher oil prices and Russian plans to reduce its holdings of U.S. government bonds.
Thursday morning in New York, the euro was at $1.3984 from $1.3987 late Wednesday. The dollar was at Y98.26 from Y98.28, according to EBS. The euro was at Y137.49 from Y137.47, and the U.K. pound was at $1.6426 from $1.6355. The dollar was at CHF1.0809 from CHF1.0814 late Wednesday.