Market info

Dollar down vs. euro

08 Jul  - Fundamental 

The dollar fell versus the euro Thursday as global markets gained and investors awaited key economic reports.

What prices are doing: The dollar dropped 0.3% versus the euro to $1.2677.

Against the British pound, the greenback edged up 0.2% to $1.5157 and it rose 0.6% versus the Japanese yen to ¥88.26.

What's moving the market: The euro rose after the Committee of European Bank Supervisors provided details about its stress tests on European banks and after the International Monetary Fund raised its global growth forecast for 2010.

Meanwhile, investors in the U.S. cheered a report on employment and awaited reports on credit and retail sales.

A report from the Department of Labor showed that the number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment insurance fell to 454,000 last week from an upwardly revised 475,000 in the previous week.

Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expected claims to have eased to 460,000 last week from 472,000 in the previous week.

Investors will also be looking at reports on retail sales to gauge consumer spending. The nation's chain stores will be reporting June sales for stores open a year or more, also known as same-store sales.

The government's report on May consumer credit is also due Thursday. Credit is expected to have fallen by $3 billion after rising by $1 billion in April.

What analysts are saying: If growth slows more than expected in the second half of the year, the dollar will be the beneficiary, said Brian Dolan, chief currency strategist at Forex.com.

«Right now, risk is on, but there's a lot happening under the surface that should make us cautious,» he said. «So we're going to need to price in a greater sell-off in risk appetite in the second half of 2010.»

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