The dollar slipped lower against the euro and the yen on Friday, as investors continued to focus on the oil market and awaited the release of a string of U.S. economic reports due later in the day.
Separately, data on Friday showed that Tokyo’s consumer price index rose at an annual rate of 0.1% in February, compared to expectations for a 0.3% fall and after a 0.3% slip the previous month.
Tokyo’s core CPI, which excludes fresh food, ticked down 0.1% this month, confounding expectations for a 0.2% fall and after a 0.1% decline in January.The pound edged higher against the U.S. dollar on Friday, as sentiment on the greenback weakened ahead of a string of key U.S. economic reports and as concerns over a potential British exit from the European Union slightly eased.
In the euro zone, preliminary data showed that Germany’s CPI ticked up 0.4% in February, disappointing expectations for a 0.5% rise, after a 0.8% fall the previous month. Year-on-year, consumer prices were flat, compared to expectations for a 0.1% gain.
The dollar strengthened after preliminary data showed that U.S. gross domestic product grew 1.0% in the fourth quarter, compared to a previously reported 0.7% growth rate and expectations for a 0.4% rate.
A separate report showed that the U.S. goods trade deficit widened to $62.23 billion in January from $61.50 billion the previous month. Analysts had expected the goods trade deficit to narrow to $61.10 billion last month.
Data also showed that personal spending rose 0.5% in January, beating expectations for a 0.3% gain, after an increase of 0.1% in December.
In addition, the University of Michigan said its index of consumer sentiment rose to 91.7 in February from 90.7 the previous month, compared to expectations for an increase to 91.0.
