Dollar Retreats From 2-Week Highs as GBP/USD Rebounds

Investing.com – The dollar retreated from a two-week high against its rivals Friday, pressured by a rebound in the pound from an 11-day low.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell by 0.01% to 94.56, after hitting a two-week high of 95.00.

GBP/USD rebounded from an 11-day low of $1.3103 to $1.3213, after U.S. President Donald Trump walked back his criticism of British Prime Minister Theresa May, and claimed a U.K.-U.S. trade deal was still possible.

That eased investor fears that Britain would struggle to secure a trade deal with the United States as Trump had reportedly told the Sun newspaper on Thursday that May's Brexit plan may "kill" Britain's chances of such a deal.

Elsewhere, China's trade surplus with the U.S. hit a record of nearly $29 billion, raising the risk of deepening its trade-related rift with the United States.

That, however, failed to trigger significant demand for safe-haven yen and Swiss franc as the latter fell modestly against the greenback.

USD/JPY fell 0.07% to Y112.44, while USD/CHF rose 0.03% to 1.0027.

The Federal Reserve's release of a monetary policy report to Congress in advance of Fed chairman Powell's testimony before the Senate due Tuesday, also had a muted impact on the dollar.

The Fed gave a positive assessment of the U.S. economy, insisting that strong labor markets and inflation would support the central bank's plan to continue with gradual rate hikes.

EUR/USD fell 0.02% to $1.1669, while the USD/CAD rose 0.11% to C$1.3169, as gains in the latter pair were limited by rising oil prices – a boon for the loonie.

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