Investing.com - The U.S. dollar fell on Thursday, as mixed trade signals kept investors at bay.
Earlier in the day, China reiterated its expectations that tariffs should be lifted as part of a phase-one deal, after Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that U.S. officials expect a deal before the latest round of American tariffs takes effect on Dec. 15.
The news was a complete turnaround from comments from U.S. President Donald Trump earlier in the week. Trump said Tuesday that a deal could be made after the 2020 election, sending markets reeling.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, slipped 0.2% to 97.458 as of 10:31 AM ET (15:31 GMT). The dollar was lower against the safe-haven Japanese yen, with USD/JPY down 0.1% to 108.75.
Elsewhere, the pound continued to rise due to confidence that the Conservative Party will win the general election on Dec. 12. GBP/USD gained 0.2% to 1.3129, while GBP/EUR rose 0.2% to 1.1853.
EUR/USD was up 0.2% to 1.1092, despite a fresh drop in German factory orders earlier in the day that point to another weak quarter for the euro zone's largest economy.
The Canadian dollar was edged slightly higher after data showed that Canada's trade deficit slightly narrowed in October. USD/CAD fell 0.1% to 1.3184.