Dollar Recovers After U.S. GDP Data

The U.S. dollar erased its early losses against its major counterparts in the European session on Friday, as the U.S. economic growth steadied in the fourth quarter and the U.S. President Donald Trump remarked that he favors a strong currency.

Data from the Commerce Department showed that real gross domestic product increased by 2.6 percent in the fourth quarter compared to the 3.2 percent growth seen in the third quarter.

Economists had expected GDP to climb by 3.0 percent.

Data from the Commerce Department showed a substantial increase in new orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods in the month of December.

The Commerce Department said durable goods orders spiked by 2.9 percent in December after surging up by an upwardly revised 1.7 percent in November.

The U.S. currency is on track to be stronger and stronger as the nation is becoming strong again, Trump said in an interview from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

"Our country is becoming so economically strong again — and strong in other ways, too, by the way — that the dollar is going to get stronger and stronger. And ultimately, I want to see a strong dollar," he told.

The greenback rose back to 109.57 against the yen, off its early low of 108.91. This may be compared to a 2-day high of 109.77 hit at 7:15 pm ET. The greenback is seen finding resistance around the 111.00 region.

Data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed that Japan consumer prices rose 1.0 percent on year in December.

That was unchanged from the November reading, although it came in beneath expectations for a gain of 1.1 percent.

The greenback staged a brief recovery to 0.9364 against the franc, off its prior low of 0.9328. If the greenback rises further, 0.95 is likely seen as its next resistance level.

The greenback bounced off to 1.2422 against the euro, from a low of 1.2493 hit at 2:45 am ET. The greenback is seen finding resistance around the 1.23 region.

Survey of Professional Forecasters published by the European Central Bank showed that the near term inflation is expected to rise more than previously projected.

Forecasters raised their inflation outlook for 2018 to 1.5 percent from 1.4 percent. Likewise, the outlook for 2019 was lifted to 1.7 percent from 1.6 percent. Inflation is seen at 1.8 percent in 2020.

The greenback erased some of its early losses against the pound with the pair trading at 1.4211. This may be compared to a low of 1.4281 hit at 4:30 am ET. The next possible resistance for the greenback is seen around the 1.38 level.

The greenback reversed from an early low of 1.2301 against the loonie, rising to 1.2360. Continuation of the greenback's uptrend may see it challenging resistance around the 1.26 area.

The greenback recovered to 0.8061 against the aussie and 0.7324 against the kiwi, from its early lows of 0.8097 and 0.7375, respectively. The currency is thus heading to pierce its multi-day highs of 0.8005 and 0.7291,respectively hit against the aussie and the kiwi in the Asian session. On the upside, 0.78 and 0.72 are possibly seen as the next resistance levels for the greenback against the aussie and the kiwi, respectively.