Labor market strength was also underscored by a sharp drop in the number of Americans on unemployment rolls to a 28-1/2-year low in the final week of April.
· Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 236,000 for the week ended May 6, the Labor Department said on Thursday, confounding economists' expectations for a rise to 245,000.
It was the 114th straight week that claims remained below the 300,000 threshold which is associated with a healthy labor market. That is the longest such stretch since 1970, when the labor market was smaller.
· The PPI increased 2.5 percent in the 12 months through April, the biggest gain since February 2012, after advancing 2.3 percent in March. Economists had forecast the PPI rising 0.2 percent and gaining 2.2 percent from a year ago.
Producer prices are firming in part as the drag from a strong dollar fades. Prices for final demand services rose 0.4 percent in April, accounting for almost two-thirds of the increase in the PPI last month.
The core PPI increased 2.1 percent in the 12 months through April, the biggest gain since August 2013, after the revamping of the PPI series. It advanced 1.7 percent in March.
· The dollar traded below an eight-week high against the yen on Friday, with the near-term focus on whether forthcoming U.S. economic data would provide the catalyst for further gains in the greenback. The dollar held steady at 113.85 yen JPY=, having pulled back from an eight-week high of 114.38 yen set on May 10.
· Concerns related to the fallout of U.S. President Donald Trump's unexpected dismissal of Federal Bureau of Investigation chief James Comey also helped weigh on the dollar.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was steady at 99.632 .DXY, up 1 percent for the week.
The euro was little changed at $1.0864 EUR=. Earlier this week it had set a six-month high of $1.1024 on relief over centrist Emmanuel Macron's victory in France's presidential election.
· President Donald Trump on Thursday ran into resistance for calling ousted FBI chief James Comey a "showboat," an attack that was swiftly contradicted by top U.S. senators and the acting FBI leader, who pledged that an investigation into possible Trump campaign ties to Russia would proceed with vigor.
· The leaders of the House of Representatives intelligence committee's investigation into U.S. allegations that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential election said on Thursday they would seek to ensure the FBI's probe "is not impeded or interfered with."
"As a part of our responsibilities, we will be conducting rigorous oversight to ensure that the FBI's own investigation is not impeded or interfered with in any way," Republican Representative Mike Conaway and Democratic Representative Adam Schiff said in a joint statement, two days after President Donald Trump fired FBI Director James Comey.
· The U.S. Senate on Thursday approved President Donald Trump's nominee for U.S. Trade Representative, a critical position ahead of renegotiations of the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico.
The Senate voted to confirm veteran trade lawyer Robert Lighthizer by a 82-14 vote.
· Top euro zone and International Monetary Fund officials will discuss debt relief for Greece early on Friday, on the sidelines of a meeting of G7 finance ministers and central bankers in the Italian city of Bari, officials said.
· Finance chiefs from the G7 begin a two-day meeting in Italy on Friday, with Europe, Japan and Canada hoping to come away with a clearer picture of U.S. President Donald Trump's direction on important policies that he has yet to spell out.
· Oil prices rose for a second day on Thursday, closing more than 1 percent higher as support grew for OPEC output cuts a day after the U.S. government reported a big draw in crude inventories, boosting confidence that a global glut might diminish.
U.S. light crude oil CLc1 ended the day up 50 cents, or 1.6 percent, at $47.83. Brent LCOc1 settled at $50.77, up 55 cents or 1.1 percent. It was the highest closing price in a week for both benchmarks.
Reference: Reuters
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