On Friday, the U.S. dollar experienced a slight decline, ending a five-day streak of gains, as global stock markets rose on heightened risk appetite following the announcement of new funding initiatives by the Chinese government.
Recent positive economic data from the U.S. has tempered expectations for aggressive interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, contributing to the dollar’s recent strength.
The Commerce Department reported that housing starts fell by 0.5% to an annual rate of 1.354 million in September, following a sharp increase of 7.8% to a revised rate of 1.361 million in August. Economists had predicted a smaller decline of 0.4% to an annual rate of 1.350 million, down from an initially reported 1.356 million for the previous month.
Additionally, there was a notable decrease in building permits, which dropped by 2.9% to an annual rate of 1.428 million in September after rising by 4.6% to a revised rate of 1.470 million in August.
Building permits, which serve as a leading indicator of future housing demand, were anticipated to decline by 1% to an annual rate of 1.460 million, down from the previously reported 1.475 million.
The dollar index fell to 103.46, reflecting a decrease of approximately 0.35% from the prior close.
In comparisons to other currencies, the dollar slipped against the Euro, trading at 1.0869 compared to 1.0832, and dropped against the Pound Sterling to 1.3048.
Against the Japanese yen, the dollar weakened to 149.52 yen per unit, down from 150.21 yen the previous evening. The dollar also decreased against the Australian dollar, now priced at 0.6705.
The Swiss franc saw a slight increase against the greenback, now at CHF 0.7650, while the Canadian dollar, or Loonie, fell to 1.3805 per U.S. dollar.
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