A strong reading on U.S. wholesale prices and jobless claims on Thursday failed to spark a renewed uptick in Treasury yields, which some traders put down to the market already pricing in a degree of inflation worries.
Moreover, the Federal Reserve has been sticking to its script that its stimulus will be in place for some time to support the economy, with officials viewing a spike in inflation as transitory.
"We've seen some surprise economic data. But because the Fed hasn't budged an inch in its stance, markets won't be able to keep talking up the inflation story," said Masaru Ishibashi, joint general manager of trading at Sumitomo Mitsui Bank.
In mid-Friday Asian trade, the dollar index stood at 90.707 , sitting on a gain of 0.5% so far this week and keeping some distance from its 2-1/2-month low of 89.979 set on Tuesday.
Against the yen, the dollar stood at 109.50 yen , below Thursday's one-month high of 109.785.
The euro was fetching $1.2076 , holding above Thursday's low of $1.20515 while the British pound changed hands at $1.4047 .
On Thursday, however, U.S. bond yields dipped, with the 10-year Treasuries yield slipping to 1.651% after hitting a five-week high of 1.707%.
The world's biggest cryptocurrency last traded at $49,155 , having fallen to as low as $45,700 on Thursday, its lowest level since March 1.
The second-biggest cryptocurrency ether was firmer at $3,783.5 , though it was still off a record high of $4,380.64 hit on Wednesday.
· US retail sales will rock the markets on Friday
Good numbers will benefit high beta currencies the most because a strong U.S. recovery provides fuel for a strong global recovery.
Reference: Reuters
Thai
Eng