The US Dollar was on the backfoot in Asian trade on Friday after two Republican Senators said yesterday that they would need to see more changes to the proposed tax reform bill before they would sign off on it. Analysts say that because the Republicans still hold a small majority, despite Tuesday’s win by Democrat Doug Jones in Alabama, it simply means a bit more wrangling to obtain passage. The latest economic data also failed to lift the greenback. Markit surveys reported preliminary manufacturing figures for December at 55.0, above analysts’ expectations of a rise to 54.0, and the services sector was reported at 52.4, down from November’s 54.5 and off the analysts’ forecast of 55.0.
As reported at 10:36 am (JST) in Tokyo, the EUR/USD was trading at $1.180, a gain of 0.19% and a new session peak; earlier, the pair had hit a session low of $1.17630. The USD/JPY is down 0.18% and trading at 112.157 Yen; the pair is off the session peak of 112.402 Yen. The AUD/USD is trading at $0.7672, up 0.14% while the NZD/USD is at $0.6999, a gain of 0.25%.
Euro Weighed Down after ECB Statement
In the Eurozone, the common currency was also under some pressure after an unexpected statement from the European Central Bank. Expressing some caution that the 2020 inflation goal might not be met, Mario Draghi, the head of the ECB, essentially said that the ECB would maintain its current loose monetary policy.