The US dollar was weaker on Monday after the US Institute of Supply Management’s purchasing managers’ index was lower than had been predicted in September, another indication that the economy in the United States is slowing down. With employment figures due at the end of the week, some analysts are predicting a down week for the greenback.
The dollar was 0.5 percent lower to ¥117.60 against the Japanese yen, after having been as high as ¥118.40 earlier in the session even though the Tankan Survey had shown Japanese business sentiment and manufacturing both up in the third quarter. The US currency dropped 0.6 percent to $1.2750 in relation to the euro, while it fell 0.7 percent to $1.8860 versus sterling.
In the Eurozone, the purchasing managers’ index was steady in September. It also predicted that input and output prices are both expected to rise even though the price of crude oil is going lower. Analysts took the report as yet another sign that the European Central Bank will raise interest rates again this week as well as in December. As a result, the euro added 0.2 percent to ¥150.00, while it held steady versus sterling at £0.6760. The CIPS Purchasing Manager’s Index in the UK was at 54.4 in September, more of a gain than had been predicted, which some analysts said raised the chances that the Bank of England will raise interest rates this week, as well.
The Hungarian forint was 0.8 percent lower to Ft274.90 versus the euro on the possibility that the nation’s prime minister could face a no-confidence vote in parliament this week.
