Forex Pros – The U.S. dollar eased off a record low against the Swiss franc on Thursday, but gains were limited after string of disappointing U.S. data sparked speculation that the Federal Reserve may continue monetary easing.
USD/CHF hit 0.8454 during European morning trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.8431, easing up 0.14%.
The pair was likely to find short-term support at 0.8381, Wednesday’s low and the pair’s all-time low and resistance at 0.8542, Wednesday’s high.
Data on Wednesday showed that U.S. private-sector employment growth slowed sharply in May, while manufacturing activity slumped to a one-year low.
Payroll processing firm ADP said U.S. non-farm payrolls rose just 38K in May, on a seasonally adjusted basis, far below expectations for an increase of 178K.
Meanwhile, the Institute for Supply Management showed its manufacturing purchasing managers’ index fell to 53.5 in May from 60.4 in April, below the 57.0 expected.
The data reinforced expectations that the Fed will not tighten policy for some time to come and sparked speculation that the central bank may go ahead with further quantitative easing measures in the months ahead.
The Swiss franc remained supported after data on Wednesday showed that Swiss retail sales rose sharply in April while the manufacturing sector picked up in May.
Elsewhere, the Swissie was sharply lower against the euro, with EUR/CHF jumping 0.92% to hit 1.2174.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish its weekly report on initial jobless claims, as well as revised data on non-farm productivity and labor costs. The country was also to publish official data on factory orders.
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