TOKYO (Reuters) – The dollar remains relatively unchanged as investors scrutinize US employment data for immediate insights while they await updates on President Trump’s tariff negotiations with major trading partners, notably China.
The Trump administration has set a deadline for Wednesday for the country to present its best trade offer. Coinciding with this, I’ve raised tariffs on imported steel and aluminum by 50%.
This week, Trump also reached out to Chinese President Xi Jinping after both nations accused one another of breaching agreements related to tariff reductions from last month.
Meanwhile, economic indicators have once again taken center stage for the US currency, even with ongoing trade tensions affecting the market. On Monday, the dollar experienced a 0.8% decline against main competitors following a contraction in manufacturing, but saw a rebound overnight with an unexpected rise in US job openings.
As of 0509 GMT, the dollar climbed 0.2% to 144.23 yen, but remained steady against other currencies, including the Euro, Sterling, and Swiss Franc. The euro traded at $1.1370, while the greenback was priced at $1.3514 against the pound and 0.8241 against the franc.
The dollar index, which tracks these four currencies plus two others, increased by 0.1% to reach 99.296.
Today’s focus will be on the ADP Employment Report, which aligns with Friday’s payroll data expectations.
“Job postings were significantly better than anticipated,” stated Joseph Capruso, an analyst from Australia’s Commonwealth Bank, referring to the recent JOLTS data keenly observed by the Federal Reserve. “If the ADP figure turns out low, it could pose a minor obstacle for USD and US bond yields to overcome, especially given the positive surprise anticipated tonight.”
Elsewhere, the Australian dollar fell 0.1% to $0.6457 following GDP figures that indicated minimal growth in the first quarter, emphasizing the necessity for further stimulus. The Canadian dollar stayed stable at $1.3722 against its US counterpart, with expectations that the Bank of Canada would likely hold interest rates steady later today.
In offshore transactions, the Chinese Yuan held steady at 7.1915 per dollar. In South Korea, the won strengthened by around 0.2% to 1,374.535 following the election victory of the liberal candidate Lee Jae-myeon.
