Investing.com - The dollar held steady against the other major currencies on Friday, as investors awaited the release of highly-anticipated U.S. jobs data amid growing uncertainty over a potential rate hike this year.
The dollar was higher against the yen, with USD/JPY up 0.18% at 120.13.
Investors were awaiting the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report for September, which could help to provide clarity on the likelihood of a near-term interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve.
The dollar came under mild selling pressure after after the Institute for Supply Management said on Thursday that its manufacturing PMI fell to 50.2 last month from a reading of 51.1 in August.
The report came shortly after the U.S. Department of Labor reported that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending September 26 increased by 10,000 to 277,000 from the previous week’s total of 267,000, compared to expectations for a 3,000 rise.
Earlier Friday, official data showed that household spending in Japan rose at an annualized rate of 2.9% in August, exceeding expectations for a 0.4% gain, after a 0.2% slip the previous month.
The dollar was also higher against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.27% to 1.1165.
The single currency found some support after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said in a speech Thursday that growth in the euro zone is picking up thanks to the central bank’s accommodative monetary policy.
Elsewhere, the dollar was lower against the pound, with GBP/USD up 0.16% at 1.5156, and was higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF adding 0.13% to 0.9786.
Demand for sterling was boosted after research group Markit reported on Friday that its U.K. construction PMI rose to a six-month high of 59.9 in September from a reading of 57.3 in August. Analysts had expected the index to tick up to 57.5 last month.
The Australian dollars was steady, with AUD/USD at 0.7029, while NZD/USD rose 0.23% to 0.6415.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics earlier reported that retail sales rose 0.4% in August, in line with expectations and after a 0.1% slip the previous month.
Meanwhile, USD/CAD slid 0.25% to trade at 1.3235.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was steady at 96.42.