Investing.com - The dollar edged higher against other major currencies on Friday, as markets awaited the release of key U.S. employment data due later in the day, although investors remained cautious following a U.S. missile strike in Syria.
EUR/USD eased 0.10% to 1.0632.
Sentiment on the greenback remained vulnerable after the U.S. launched cruise missiles at an airbase in Syria, sparking concerns of an escalation in the Syrian civil war.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he ordered missile strikes against a Syrian airfield from which a deadly chemical weapons attack was launched.
The air strike came during a two-day summit between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping which, on Thursday, had a strong focus on trade and North Korea's military program.
Trump had warned that he would be ready to act unilaterally to address North Korea's nuclear program if China does not step up to help in the matter.
Market participants were also looking ahead to the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report, due later Friday, a day after the release of upbeat jobless claims data.
Elsewhere, GBP/USD fell 0.26% to 1.2436 after the U.K. Office for National Statistics said manufacturing production fell 0.1% in February, compared to expectations for a gain of 0.2% and following a decline of 1.0% in the previous month.
On an annualized basis, manufacturing production increased by 3.3% in February, below forecasts for a 3.9% advance.
The report also showed that industrial production fell 0.7% in February, compared to forecasts for a 0.2% increase.
USD/JPY edged down 0.13% to 110.66, while USD/CHF added 0.10% to 1.0060.
The Australian dollar was weaker, with AUD/USD down 0.20% at 0.7531, while NZD/USD was little changed at 0.6969.
Meanwhile, USD/CAD slipped 0.17% to 1.3390.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.08% at 100.70, still close to Wednesday’s three-week high of 100.99.