Dollar down

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TOKYO: The dollar wallowed near a one-week low against a basket of currencies on Friday after upbeat economic data failed to lift Treasury yields, with underlying concerns about U.S. trade policy capping greenback attempts to bounce.

The dollar index against a group of major currencies stood flat at 100.470 after hitting 100.410 overnight, its lowest since Feb. 9. The index had soared to a one-month high of 101.760 as recently as Wednesday, as U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen spoke in support of a near-term rate hike and the markets also saw robust U.S. inflation and retails sales data.

Indicators released on Thursday shed more positive light on the U.S. economy, with the Philadelphia manufacturing index on jumping to a 33-year high. But the robust data was unable to sustain a rise in Treasury yields, which had already climbed to three-week highs mid-week, leaving the dollar to buckle. "The dollar did rally in spurts this week but the surge lacked strong conviction. For example dollar/yen failed to take out the 115.00 threshold," said Junichi Ishikawa, senior forex strategist at IG Securities in Tokyo. "This shows that the market is still trying to work out the implication of President Trump´s policies, of which his approach to trade may not be supportive for the dollar.