• The dollar struggled near seven-week lows on Thursday on growing concerns over U.S. President Donald Trump's protectionist policies including an executive order to construct a U.S.-Mexican border wall.
The dollar, which often draws support from higher Treasury yields, failed to follow suit, with an index tracking the greenback against a basket of major currencies .DXY sliding to a seven-week low of 99.335 on Wednesday.
The dollar was little changed at 113.420 yen JPY= after losing 0.45 percent overnight. The euro was steady at $1.0748 EUR= after gaining 0.2 percent the previous day.
• President Donald Trump on Wednesday ordered construction of a U.S.-Mexican border wall and punishment for cities shielding illegal immigrants while mulling restoring a CIA secret detention program as he launched broad but divisive plans to reshape U.S. immigration and national security policy.
A draft executive order seen by Reuters that Trump is expected to sign in the coming days would block the entry of refugees from war-torn Syria and suspend the entry of any immigrants from Muslim-majority Middle Eastern and African countries Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Iran, Libya and Yemen while permanent rules are studied.
• The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal cannot proceed without the United States, Canada said on Tuesday, even as Australia and New Zealand pledged to salvage it.
Canada will focus on preserving its U.S. trade ties during talks to renegotiate NAFTA and may not be able to help Mexico avoid being targeted by the Trump administration, Canadian government sources say.
"We love our Mexican friends. But our national interests come first and the friendship comes second," a source said on the sidelines of a cabinet retreat in Calgary, Alberta.
• Oil prices fell on Wednesday after earlier shrugging off a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration that showed the nation's crude inventories rose and gasoline stocks increased sharply.
U.S. light crude settled down 43 cents at $52.75. Benchmark Brent crude fell 25 cents a barrel to $55.19 by 2:54p.m. ET (1954 GMT).
• U.S. crude stockpiles rose by 2.8 million barrels in the week through Jan. 20, matching analysts expectations and roughly in line with an earlier report from the American Petroleum Institute.
• U.S. gasoline futures fell to a session low after EIA reported gasoline stocks rose by 6.8 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 498,000-barrel gain. It pared losses shortly after the report came out.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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