The US Dollar Index (DXY) is concluding the week on a three-day winning streak near 98.60. Despite a softer CPI print earlier in the week, comments from Fed’s John Williams suggesting data distortions, combined with a 25 bps rate cut on Wednesday, have kept the Greenback resilient. Meanwhile, the labor market remains steady as Initial Jobless Claims fell to 224,000, beating expectations.
Across the majors, the EUR/USD remains stagnant near 1.1740 following the ECB’s decision to hold rates steady, with President Lagarde maintaining a non-committal stance on future paths. The GBP/USD also saw little movement, finishing near 1.3380 despite a 25 bps cut from the BoE and lackluster retail sales growth. In Asia, USD/JPY approached a monthly high at 157.30 after the BoJ’s unanimous 25 bps hike to 0.75%, signaling a continued tightening bias.
Looking ahead, the macroeconomic calendar will quiet down for the Christmas holidays, though investors will eye US GDP and Durable Goods data on December 23, followed by Japan’s CPI and Governor Ueda’s speech on December 25.