The dollar is turning in a mixed performance at the end of the trading week. The U.S. currency is nearly unchanged in comparison to the Euro, but is falling against the Japanese Yen as investors turn more risk averse. However, the dollar is gaining ground against the pound sterling, after some comments from Mark Carney.
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said the assessment of how to evolve guidance to changing circumstances will begin in the February Inflation Report. Policymakers would consider a range of options to update the guidance, he said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
In August, the bank pledged to keep interest rates at the current 0.50 percent until the unemployment rate falls to 7 percent. The jobless rate fell to 7.1 percent in the three months through November.
The dollar dipped to over a 2-year low of $1.6667 against the pound sterling early Friday, but has since climbed to around $1.6500.
U.K. mortgage approvals increased less than expected in December, figures released by the British Bankers’ Association said Friday. The number of mortgages approved for house purchases rose to 46,521 from 45,394 in November. The figure was less than an expected 47,300.
Sentiment among British households regarding the value of their homes improved to an all-time high in January, data from a survey by Markit Economics and Knight Frank revealed Friday. The future house price sentiment index climbed to an all-time high of 72.3 in January from 70.5 in December, indicating that prices are expected to rise at the fastest pace since records started.
The greenback dropped to a 3-week low of $1.3738 against the Euro on Friday, but has since risen back to around $1.3680, nearly unchanged for the session.
Investor concerns about slowing growth in China persisted on Friday, following yesterday’s weaker than expected manufacturing report. In addition, Argentina devalued its currency the most in 12 years, the Turkish central bank intervened directly in foreign exchange markets for the first time in two years and most emerging-market currencies remained under selling pressure on worries about stimulus tapering. All of the negative news proved beneficial to the Japanese Yen, due to its safe haven status.
The buck has added to yesterday’s sharp losses against the Japanese Yen, falling to around Y102.225 on Friday, its lowest level since early December. The U.S. currency began Thursday’s session around the Y104.830 level.
