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Friday 21 June 2013

Dollar mixed vs. rivals in light trade

The U.S. dollar was mixed against the other major currencies in light trade on Friday, as Thursday's U.S. data painted a mixed picture of the strength of the economic recovery, while questions over the future of the Federal Reserve's stimulus program supported the greenback. 

During European morning trade, the dollar was steady against the euro, with EUR/USD easing up 0.03% to 1.3223. 

The European Central Bank said its current account surplus narrowed to EUR19.5 billion in April, from a surplus of EUR25.9 billion, confounding expectations for the surplus to narrow to EUR14.2 billion. 

The greenback was higher against the pound, with GBP/USD slipping 0.17% to 1.5480. 

Official data earlier showed that U.K. public sector net borrowing rose less-than-expected in May, rising by GBP10.5 billion, after a GBP6.6 billion increase the previous month. 

Analysts had expected public sector net borrowing to rise by GBP13.8 billion last month. 

Elsewhere, the greenback was higher against the yen, with USD/JPYadvancing 0.49% to trade at 97.72, and steady against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF inching 0.01% higher to 0.9274. 

Earlier in the day, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said financial markets will likely stabilise over time, reflecting improvements in Japan's economy. 

Kuroda also warned that uncertainty surrounding the world's third-largest economy remains high, and that the central bank will carefully watch market developments. 

The greenback was lower against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD dipping 0.02% to 1.0381,AUD/USD climbing 0.41% to 0.9234 and NZD/USD adding 0.17% to 0.7770. 

The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.07% to 82.04. 

The greenback remained supported after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday said the bank could begin slowing asset purchases by the end of 2013 and wind them down completely by the middle of 2014 if the economy picks up as the central bank expects. 

Trading volumes were expected to remain light, as no U.S. data was scheduled to be released throughout the day.

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