Dollar On The Rise As Risk Appetite Wanes

Dollar On The Rise As Risk Appetite Wanes




The dollar continued to rally on Thursday, supported by fears that central banks are not planning to do more to support the sluggish global recovery.
A day after the European Central Bank held steady on interest rates, Bank of England policymakers retained their record low interest rates and kept the size of bond purchases unchanged.
Stocks fell sharply and gold tumbled on Wednesday, pulling back after a strong first quarter.
The dollar jumped to a 3-week high of $1.3054 versus he euro, having picked up 3 cents this week.
Germany's industrial production fell more than expected in February, reflecting a wide spread contraction in manufacturing and construction sectors.
Industrial output dropped 1.3 percent in February from a month ago, offsetting January's 1.2 percent growth, according to the report released by the Federal Ministry of Economy and Technology on Thursday.
The buck rallied to a 2-week high of $1.5816 versus the sterling, away from last week's 4-month low near $1.6060.
Industrial production in the U.K. increased in February helped by higher energy and utilities output, while manufacturing production fell for a second month.
The dollar struggled versus the safe haven yen, sliding to Y81.80 from Y82.25.
On the economic front, the Labor Department is due to release its customary jobless claims report for the week ended March 31st at 8:30 am ET. Economists expect claims to edge up to 360,000 from 359,000 in the previous week.
St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard is scheduled to speak to the 13th Annual InvestMidwest Venture Capital Forum, on "The U.S. Economy and Monetary Policy," in St. Louis at 9:10 am ET. He will also take questions from the audience and the press.


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