Dollar Trading Mixed As Week Draws To A Close

The dollar is turning in a mixed performance against its major rivals Friday afternoon. The U.S. currency is rising against the Euro and the Japanese Yen, but is down against the British pound.

Global equity markets rallied higher Friday amidst numerous signals that the central banks are willing and able to introduce further stimulus measures if necessary. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi got the ball rolling yesterday.

Draghi said on Thursday that there were no limits on what policy tools the bank can deploy to achieve its inflation goal and to boost euro area growth, and hinted that more stimulus measures may come in March as the downside risks such as global uncertainty, market volatility and geopolitics have increased.

China's Vice President Li Yuanchao said on Thursday that market forces will guide the movement of the currency and China will keep intervening in the stock market to avoid excessive volatility.

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said in an interview Friday that there are many ways to strengthen the BOJ's easing program if needed.

The dollar began Friday's session around the $1.0840 level against the Euro, but has since climbed to around $1.0790.

Eurozone private sector growth eased more-than-expected to a 11-month low in January, suggesting that the slowdown in emerging markets affected economic activity. The Composite Purchasing Managers' Index, which combines manufacturing and services, fell to 53.5 in January from 54.3 in December, flash data from Markit Economics showed Friday. Economists had forecast a modest decline to 54.2.

Germany's private sector grew at the slowest pace in three months in January, flash data from Markit showed Friday. The composite output index fell to 54.5 in January from 55.5 in December.

The French private sector expanded at a slightly faster pace in January, flash survey results from Markit showed Friday. The flash composite output index rose marginally to 50.5 in January from 50.1 in December.

The buck fell to a low of $1.4362 against the pound sterling Friday, but has since bounced back to around $1.4290.

U.K. retail sales declined more than expected in December, figures from the Office for National Statistics revealed Friday. Retail sales fell 1 percent in December from November, when it grew 1.3 percent. Economists had forecast a 0.3 percent drop for December.

The U.K. budget deficit narrowed in December, the Office for National Statistics said Friday. Public sector net borrowing excluding public sector banks decreased GBP 4.3 billion to GBP 7.5 billion in December. The expected level was GBP 10.5 billion.

British households perceive that the value of their home increased at the start of the year, though the rate of growth eased from the prior month, a survey from Knight Frank and Markit Economics showed Friday. The house price sentiment index, or HPSI, fell to 58.7 in January from 59.4 in December.

The greenback has broken out to a 2-week high of Y118.800 against the Japanese Yen Friday afternoon, from Wednesday's low of Y115.969.

The manufacturing sector in Japan continued to expand in January, albeit at a slightly slower pace, the latest survey from Nikkei revealed on Friday with a PMI score of 52.4. That was shy of expectations for 52.8, and it was down from 52.6 in December.

After reporting a notable decrease in U.S. existing home sales in the previous month, the National Association of Realtors released a report on Friday showing that sales rebounded strongly in December. NAR said existing home sales jumped 14.7 percent to an annual rate of 5.46 million in December from a rate of 4.76 million in November. Economists had expected sales to climb to a rate of 5.20 million.

With a drop in housing permits and weak new orders in manufacturing leading the decline, the Conference Board released a report on Friday showing a modest decrease in leading U.S. economic indicators in the month of December.

The Conference Board said its leading economic index edged down by 0.2 percent in December after climbing by a revised 0.5 percent in November. Economists had expected the index to slip by 0.1 percent.