Dollar Slides – But Retreat is Capped by Weak German Sales Data
May 31st, 2008 | By Doug Casey | Category: US Dollar & Forex TradingIn the currency market, the dollar sagged a bit against the euro. Late Friday, the euro was trading at $1.5549 vs. $1.5501 on Thursday.
The buck’s performance was tempered by an announcement that German retail sales fell 1.7% in April, vs. consensus expectations for 1.4% growth. That curbed talk that the European Central Bank might raise interest rates, making it even more competitive with the dollar.
It also provided evidence that the slowdown already being felt in the southern European economies is beginning to make itself known in core countries.
Meanwhile, the dollar actually strengthened against the Canadian loonie after Canada reported the first quarterly decline in economic growth since the second quarter of 2003. March growth declined 0.2% from the previous month.
“The renewed deterioration in GDP suggests that the Canadian economy is being more greatly impacted by the U.S. slowdown than earlier thought,” wrote Michael Woolfolk, of the Bank of New York Mellon.
And the U.S. Commerce Department reported that nominal personal incomes, nominal consumer spending and consumer prices all increased 0.2% in April, suggesting the economy weakened further in the second quarter of the year, even as the first tax-rebate checks began arriving.
Source: Dollar Slides – But Retreat is Capped by Weak German Sales Data
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Doug Casey is a contrarian investor, sought-after public speaker and author of several books. His work "Crisis Investing" held the position of # 1 bestseller on the New York Times list for 26 consecutive weeks. Doug's unusual views on the economy - and just about everything else - have gained a huge following in the investment community, and it certainly helps that his stock recommendations of undervalued junior exploration companies have made his subscribers millions. Now in its 27th year, Doug's monthly newsletter, the International Speculator, is one of the most established and esteemed publications on gold, silver and other natural resource investments. Together with the Casey Energy Speculator, it covers a broad range of carefully selected stocks with the very real potential of double- and triple-digit returns within 12 to 24 months.