The U.S. dollar regained some ground against the euro on Friday after European Central Bank president Mario Draghi said the ECB could deploy more stimulus if needed, leading traders to reestablish short positions in the currency.
Draghi said the ECB is confident its latest measures will allow it to achieve its inflation target but stands ready to do more monetary stimulus if needed.
The comments came after the ECB announced a bare-minimum easing package on Thursday that disappointed expectations for a more dramatic move and led traders to scramble to unwind hefty short bets against the euro.
The euro hit a session low of $1.08360 after Draghi's comments, but did not stray far from Thursday's elevated levels. The euro posted its biggest one-day percentage gain against the dollar in nearly seven years on Thursday and hit a one-month high of $1.09810. The euro remained on track for its biggest weekly percentage gain against the dollar in seven months.
"Are they doing their best to smooth the market and stem any panic? Yes, absolutely," said Greg Anderson, global head of FX strategy at BMO Capital Markets in New York, in reference to Draghi's comments.