Jumat, 05 Desember 2014

Dollar Probes 120 Yen on U.S. Growth as Euro Traders Await ECB


The dollar strengthened to within 0.1 percent of 120 yen, reaching the highest level since July 2007, as analysts forecast that U.S. job growth will accelerate, boosting the economy while Japan™s remains mired in recession.
While the U.S. currency is being buoyed by signs of strength in the American economy, the yen and the euro are weakening as their central banks expand stimulus measures to boost growth. Europe™s shared currency touched a two-year low today as traders awaited a monetary-policy decision from the European Central Bank. Australia™s dollar slid for a sixth day after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. forecast it would decline to 79 U.S. cents.
The dollar rose 0.1 percent to 119.93 yen at 12:10 p.m. London time, after rising to 119.98, the strongest level since July 2007. The U.S. currency was little changed at $1.2313 per euro after appreciating to $1.2296, the strongest since August 2012. The yen traded at 147.66 per euro.
About $3 billion in options contracts with strikes at 120 yen per dollar expire today, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, potentially limiting the decline of the Japanese currency. The greenback appreciated 14 percent against the yen this year as the Fed moved closer to raising interest rates while the Bank of Japan increased the scale of its bond purchases as recently as October.
Source : Bloomberg