North American Summary and Highlights 8 Feb
Overview - In quiet trade the USD advanced in Europe but slipped back in North America, but held firm versus the JPY.
North American session
Not much FX movement through the North American session USD/JPY extended gains slightly to a high of 149.48, following a broadly as expected dip in jobless claims data, but otherwise the USD was generally a little softer. EUR/USD rose 10 pips to 1.0775, and USD/CAD dropped around 25 pips to 1.3465, with CAD outperforming the AUD as AUD/USD sustained a move below .65. EUR/GBP was not much changed despite speeches from MPC hawk Mann and dove Dhingra.
European morning session
The USD was generally firmer through a largely newsless European morning, but gained most ground against the JPY, breaking above 149 towards the end of the session for the first time since November. USD/JPY traded as high as 149.15 after an open at 148.60, although US equity futures retreated slightly form the highs. EUR/USD fell only around 10 pips to 1.0770 while AUD/USD dropped 20 pips to test 0.65.
On the crosses, NOK/SEK fell around 40 pips to 0.9860, while EUR/CHF edged slightly lower. The ECB Economic bulletin revealed nothing new, indicating that rates would remain at restrictive levels for as long as necessary.