Dollar rises as NAFTA talks continue
The US dollar rose against other currencies on Friday as the NAFTA review talks between the US and Canada were underway.
However, the dollar index, a measure of the value of the US currency versus six currencies, is still down 0.3%. Over the past two weeks, the dollar fell 1.3 percent.
The US dollar rose late on Thursday in the safe haven movement after Bloomberg News reported that US President Donald Trump wanted to push ahead with a plan to impose a $ 200 billion import duty on China next week. This concern spread to the EU after Trump also said that the EU proposal to remove tariffs on cars “is not good enough.”
“Markets have a” distinct view of risk “the day after Trump’s comments, said Sean Osborne, chief forex adviser at Skoshiabank. “President Trump’s remarks in Bloomberg late yesterday, which criticized … EU, ready to move on Chinese tariffs … add to the market fears widely,” he said.
The euro fell 0.6 percent to $ 1.1592 after losing nearly 0.3 percent overnight as Italian government bond yields boosted further currency pressure. The yen and the Swiss franc also gained safe haven as investors fear Europe’s expectations.
Trump has threatened to impose customs duties on vehicles assembled by German automakers Volkswagen AG, Daimler AG and BMW A. Trump also threatened in an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday to withdraw from the WTO if “they did not form.”
These comments played down any positive sentiment after negotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
At the same time, the EU has offered to abolish tariffs on cars, but Trump said the offer was “not good enough”. Trump threatened to impose a 25 percent tariff on all cars, with the EU threatening to respond.
Trading is expected to be light ahead of the Labor Day holiday, with markets closed on Monday.