Dollar edges down as trade tensions simmer ahead of jobs data
The dollar drifted lower on Wednesday as the market looked ahead to U.S. employment data for immediate trading cues, while waiting on developments in President Donald Trump's tariff negotiations with key trading partners including China.
The Trump administration has given a Wednesday deadline for countries to submit their best offers on trade, the same day a doubling of duties to 50% on imported steel and aluminum comes into effect.
Trump is also tipped by the White House to have a call this week with Chinese President Xi Jinping after the two sides accused each other of violating the terms of an agreement last month to roll back some tariffs.
In the meantime, macroeconomic indicators have returned as a driver of the U.S. currency this week, even if trade frictions remain center stage. The dollar slumped 0.8% against major peers on Monday following a contraction in manufacturing, only to rebound by almost the same amount overnight after a surprise increase in U.S. job openings.
Early on Wednesday, the dollar was down 0.09% at 143.82 yen and the euro was up 0.13% at $1.1385.
The dollar index, which measures the currency against those two peers and four other counterparts, was flat at 99.159.
Traders will have an eye on the ADP employment report later in the day, in the run-up to crucial U.S. monthly payrolls figures on Friday.
"Job openings were much stronger than expected," Commonwealth Bank of Australia analyst Joseph Capurso said of the overnight JOLTS data, which is closely watched by the Federal Reserve.
"The low estimate for ADP means the USD and U.S. bond yields have a small hurdle to climb for a positive surprise tonight."
Elsewhere, the Australian dollar was little changed at $0.6460 ahead of the release of GDP figures.
South Korea's won strengthened about 0.2% to 1,375.25 per dollar after the victory of liberal candidate Lee Jae-myung in the country's presidential election.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wall Street Journal
7 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
Live Q&A: The Big Blowup—We Answer Your Questions About the Trump/Musk Feud
What questions do you have about the falling-out between President Trump and Elon Musk? Long-simmering tensions between Trump and Musk burst into the open on Thursday. In a rupture that could have serious consequences for both men as well as for broad federal initiatives and policies, the two traded barbs and insults on social media and threatened to use their power against one another.
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Yeah... So... Here's How Fox News Is (Bizarrely) Talking About Donald Trump And Elon Musk's Breakup
If you somehow missed it, President Donald Trump and his former advisor (and bestie) Elon Musk got into a back-and-forth spat on social media yesterday. A lot was said. Trump accused Elon of backing down on his support for the president's championed "One, Big Beautiful Bill" because "he found out we're gonna have to cut the EV mandate." And Elon called said Trump was showing "such ingratitude" considering, "without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate." Not one to be upstaged, Trump threatened to "terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts." And Elon volleyed back by accusing Trump of being "in the Epstein files," despite Trump denying connections to Jeffrey Epstein. Obviously, the sitting president and the world's richest man getting into a very public feud was widely covered by news outlets, including Fox News — a conservative outlet Trump has openly admired... and also one that appears to go light on the president. Related: This Senator's Clap Back Fully Gagged An MSNBC Anchor, And The Clip Is Going Viral So here's how they covered the quarrell: Fox News host Sean Hannity shared footage of Trump handing Elon a ceremonial, gold-colored key during Elon's government send-off last week. "That was less than a week ago," Hannity said. "These are two very talented individuals. Frankly, they don't need each other to be successful, but I do hope they work it out and set an example for the rest of the country." Related: This Republican Lawmaker's Embarrassing Lack Of Knowledge Of The Term "Intersex" Went Viral After He Proposed An Amendment To Cut LGBTQ+ Funding Host of her own Fox show, Laura Ingraham ran a segment on the pair called "When Friendship Gets DOGE'd," where she praised Elon while suggesting Trump should "simply disengage." "Musk is his own person," Ingraham said. "The government contracts that he has stand on their own merit. They shouldn't be called into question. Threatening to pull them, that's not wise, when five minutes ago you were hailing Musks work in helping rescue the stranded Americans in space. Elon Musk is like the Thomas Edison of our time. He sacrificed for America personally and professionally, and he wanted to make the Trump presidency happen, and it did." Fox News / Twitter: @Acyn And finally, we have Jesse Watters, who insisted that, "Sometimes when you're angry, you say things you don't mean." As an odd and hopefully tongue-in-cheek example, Watters pointed to peer Greg Gutfeld, saying, "Greg mocked my hair last week, and I said he's on the Epstein list." Continuing, Watters said, "Now, I didn't mean that. I made it up." "Sometimes guys fight," Watters pressed on. "Guys will sometimes punch you in the face, and the next night you're having a beer. Sleep with your girlfriend, and you patch things up. Not your wife, your girlfriend!" "These guys are like roommates. They were living in close quarters for like, the first six months of the year. They're just blowing off steam." Well! There you have it. What are your thoughts on the coverage? Let us know in the comments. Also in In the News: People Can't Believe This "Disgusting" Donald Trump Jr. Post About Joe Biden's Cancer Diagnosis Is Real Also in In the News: Republicans Are Calling Tim Walz "Tampon Tim," And The Backlash From Women Is Too Good Not To Share Also in In the News: "We Don't Import Food": 31 Americans Who Are Just So, So Confused About Tariffs And US Trade
Yahoo
8 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Exclusive-US suspends licenses to ship nuclear plant parts to China, sources say
By Karen Freifeld and Fanny Potkin (Reuters) -The U.S. in recent days suspended licenses for nuclear equipment suppliers to sell to China's power plants, according to four people familiar with the matter, as the two countries engage in a damaging trade war. The suspensions were issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the people said, and affect export licenses for parts and equipment used with nuclear power plants. Nuclear equipment suppliers are among a wide range of companies whose sales have been restricted over the past two weeks as the U.S.-China trade war shifted from negotiating tariffs to throttling each other's supply chains. It is unclear whether a Thursday call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would affect the suspensions. The U.S. and China agreed on May 12 to roll back triple digit, tit-for-tat tariffs for 90 days, but the truce between the two biggest economies quickly went south, with the U.S. claiming China reneged on terms related to rare earth elements, and China accusing the U.S. of "abusing export control measures" by warning that using Huawei Ascend AI chips anywhere in the world violated U.S. export controls. After Thursday's call, further talks on key issues were expected. The U.S. Department of Commerce did not respond to a request for comment on the nuclear equipment restrictions. On May 28, a spokesperson said the department was reviewing exports of strategic significance to China. "In some cases, Commerce has suspended existing export licenses or imposed additional license requirements while the review is pending," the spokesperson said in a statement. The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. U.S. nuclear equipment suppliers include Westinghouse and Emerson. Westinghouse, whose technology is used in over 400 nuclear reactors around the world, and Emerson, which provides measurement and other tools for the nuclear industry, did not respond to requests for comment. The suspensions affect business worth hundreds of millions of dollars, two of the sources said. They also coincide with Chinese restrictions on critical metals threatening supply chains for manufacturers worldwide, especially America's Big Three automakers. Reuters could not determine whether the new restrictions were tied to the trade war, or if and how quickly they might be reinstated. Department of Commerce export licenses typically run for four years and include authorized quantities and values. But many new restrictions on exports to China have been imposed in the last two weeks, according to sources, and include license requirements for a hydraulic fluids supplier for sales to China. Other license suspensions went to GE Aerospace for jet engines for China's COMAC aircraft, sources said. The U.S. also now requires licenses to ship ethane to China, as Reuters reported first last week. Houston-based Enterprise Product Partners said Wednesday that its emergency requests to complete three proposed cargoes of ethane to China, totaling some 2.2 million barrels, had not been granted. Enterprise said a May 23 requirement for a license to sell butane to China, in addition to the ethane, was subsequently withdrawn. Dallas-based Energy Transfer said it was notified on Tuesday about the new ethane licensing requirement, and planned to apply and file for an emergency authorization. Other sectors that have been hit with new restrictions include companies that sell electronic design automation software such as Cadence Design Systems. Sign in to access your portfolio
