Investing.com - The dollar was higher against the yen and the euro on Monday after data showing that U.S. retail sales rose unexpectedly in April bolstered the outlook for the U.S. recovery.
During U.S. morning trade, the dollar was hovering close to four-and-a-half year highs against the yen, with USD/JPY rising 0.17% to 101.78, after climbing as high as 102.16 earlier Monday.
The Commerce Department said U.S. retail sales rose 0.1% in April, confounding expectations for a 0.3% decline. The previous months figure was revised down to 0.5% from 0.4%.
Core retail sales, which exclude automobile sales, fell by 0.1% last month, in line with expectations.
The dollar remained broadly stronger amid speculation over a possible near-term exit from the Federal Reserve’s asset purchase program after recent strong U.S. employment data indicated that the economic outlook is improving.
The yen slumped to its lowest level against the dollar since October 2008 during the Asian session after finance ministers from the Group of Seven industrialized economies refrained from criticizing Japan over policies which have resulted in a weaker yen.
The dollar was trading close to one-month lows against the euro, with EUR/USD dipping 0.04% to 1.2983.
The single currency remained under pressure after a member of the European Central Bank’s governing council said the bank could cut its deposit rate into negative territory. The deposit rate is the rate paid by the ECB on overnight deposits by euro zone banks.
The pound edged lower against the dollar, with GBP/USD slipping 0.09% to 1.5347.
The dollar was little changed against the Swiss franc with USD/CHF inching down 0.04% to 0.9568.
Retail sales in Switzerland fell 0.9% in March compared to a year earlier, official data on Monday showed, confounding expectations for a 0.8% increase.
The greenback was broadly higher against its Australian, New Zealand and Canadian counterparts, with AUD/USD down 0.52% to 0.9967, NZD/USD losing 0.48% to trade at 0.8262 and USD/CAD dipping 0.08% to 1.0097.
The Aussie fell below parity against the greenback to trade at 11-month lows after official data showed that industrial production in China rose 9.3% in April, below expectations for a 9.5% increase.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, edged up 0.11% to 83.27.
During U.S. morning trade, the dollar was hovering close to four-and-a-half year highs against the yen, with USD/JPY rising 0.17% to 101.78, after climbing as high as 102.16 earlier Monday.
The Commerce Department said U.S. retail sales rose 0.1% in April, confounding expectations for a 0.3% decline. The previous months figure was revised down to 0.5% from 0.4%.
Core retail sales, which exclude automobile sales, fell by 0.1% last month, in line with expectations.
The dollar remained broadly stronger amid speculation over a possible near-term exit from the Federal Reserve’s asset purchase program after recent strong U.S. employment data indicated that the economic outlook is improving.
The yen slumped to its lowest level against the dollar since October 2008 during the Asian session after finance ministers from the Group of Seven industrialized economies refrained from criticizing Japan over policies which have resulted in a weaker yen.
The dollar was trading close to one-month lows against the euro, with EUR/USD dipping 0.04% to 1.2983.
The single currency remained under pressure after a member of the European Central Bank’s governing council said the bank could cut its deposit rate into negative territory. The deposit rate is the rate paid by the ECB on overnight deposits by euro zone banks.
The pound edged lower against the dollar, with GBP/USD slipping 0.09% to 1.5347.
The dollar was little changed against the Swiss franc with USD/CHF inching down 0.04% to 0.9568.
Retail sales in Switzerland fell 0.9% in March compared to a year earlier, official data on Monday showed, confounding expectations for a 0.8% increase.
The greenback was broadly higher against its Australian, New Zealand and Canadian counterparts, with AUD/USD down 0.52% to 0.9967, NZD/USD losing 0.48% to trade at 0.8262 and USD/CAD dipping 0.08% to 1.0097.
The Aussie fell below parity against the greenback to trade at 11-month lows after official data showed that industrial production in China rose 9.3% in April, below expectations for a 9.5% increase.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, edged up 0.11% to 83.27.