Investing.com - The dollar edged higher against the other major currencies on Friday, paring some of the losses posted following the previous session’s downbeat U.S. manufacturing activity data, as investors turned to the upcoming nonfarm payrolls report.
EUR/USD slipped 0.13% to at 1.1183, just off Wednesday three-week low of 1.1121.
The greenback had weakened after the Institute for Supply Management said on Thursday that its manufacturing activity index dropped to 49.4 last month from July’s reading of 52.6. It was the worst reading since January and missed expectations for a slight drop to 52.0.
The report came shortly after data showed that U.S. initial jobless claims increased by 2,000 to 263,000 last week, compared to expectations for a 4,000 rise to 265,000.
Market participants were eyeing the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report due later Friday for further indications on the strength of the job market after Federal Reserve officials recently indicated that the pace of interest rate increases will be data dependent.
GBP/USD held steady at 1.3273, close to the previous session’s one-month high of 1.3317.
Research group Markit said on Friday thats its U.K. construction purchasing managers’ index rose to 49.2 in August from 45.9 the previous month, beating expectations for an increase to 46.1.
The data came a day after Markit said its U.K. manufacturing PMI rose to a 10-month high this month, easing concerns over a potential economic slowdown in the U.K. following the June 23 vote to leave the European Union.
USD/JPY gained 0.36% to trade at 103.59, after hitting five-week highs of 104.01 on Thursday, while USD/CHF was little changed at 0.9803.
The Australian and New Zealand dollars were steady, with AUD/USD at 0.7549 and with NZD/USD at 0.7287.
Elsewhere, USD/CAD was little changed at 1.3099, off Thursday’s three-week peak of 1.3149.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.14% at 95.80, bouncing off the four-day low of 95.58 hit overnight.