· The euro was stuck near two-week lows on Thursday and the dollar drifted away from recent highs as sliding government bond yields pressured both currencies.
The global bond rally has accelerated this week on expectations of more monetary easing from central banks, although the impact on foreign exchange markets has been limited, with overall volatility remaining low.
Markets were closed in the United States on Thursday for its Independence Day.
The euro traded slightly higher at $1.1286. It has weakened since IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, perceived as a policy dove, was nominated as the next European Central Bank president.
The dollar index was marginally lower at 96.734.
The dollar has weakened in recent weeks as expectations build for a Federal Reserve rate cut later this month, although the index is off three-month lows of 95.843 plumbed in June.
The focus now shifts to U.S. non-farm payrolls data due on Friday, which economists expect to have risen by 160,000 in June, compared with a rise of 75,000 in May.
· Vietnam and the European Union on Sunday inked a first-of-its-kind trade deal that will eliminate 99% of tariffs on goods imported from the Asian developing nation to the bloc.
As the ongoing U.S.-China tariff battle upends global trade, many countries are worried about suffering ill effects. The EU-Vietnam deal demonstrates, however, that Hanoi is poised to come out of the era as one of the great beneficiaries.
And even though U.S. President Donald Trump suggested recently that Vietnam could be his next major tariffs target, the new deal is likely to provide economic cushion for the Southeast Asian nation. In fact, the European Union described the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement as “the most ambitious free trade deal ever concluded with a developing country.”
· In commodity markets, oil fell on data showing a smaller-than-expected decline in U.S. crude stockpiles and worries about the global economy.
Brent crude futures LCOc1, the international benchmark for oil prices, were a tick weaker at $63.23 per barrel while U.S. crude eased to $56.69.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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