FOREX-Dollar dented as data disappoints; sterling soars

* Weak U.S. retail sales cast gloom over economy
* Norwegian crown dips vs dollar
* Sterling rides rollercoaster of Brexit deal hopes

(New throughout, updates rates and adds comments post-U.S.
market open; new byline, changes dateline, previous LONDON)
By Saqib Iqbal Ahmed
NEW YORK, Oct 16 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar fell across the
board on Wednesday after dismal U.S. retail sales data painted a
gloomy picture of the economy and supported the case for further
interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
The dollar index .DXY , which measures the U.S. currency
against six major currencies, was down 0.1% at 98.188.
U.S. retail sales fell for the first time in seven months in
September, suggesting that manufacturing-led weakness could be
spreading to the broader economy. "The U.S. economy is indeed revealing further weaknesses,
justifying another rate cut by the Fed," Marc-André Fongern, a
strategist at MAF Global Forex in Frankfurt, said.
With two weeks to go until their next policy meeting, U.S.
central bankers remain divided about the need to cut borrowing
costs for a third time this year.
"If the consumer shows stronger signs of weakness, we could
easily see the Fed commit to an easing cycle," Edward Moya, a
senior market analyst at OANDA in New York, said in a note.
The dollar's losses were most pronounced against other
safe-haven currencies such as the yen and the Swiss franc.
Against the yen, the greenback fell 0.1%, while it slipped
0.18% against the Swiss franc.
Lingering worries about trade tensions between the United
States and China have kept investors' risk appetite in check.
Reports of a partial trade deal between the world's two
largest economies last week initially cheered markets, but a
lack of details on the agreement has since curbed any
enthusiasm.
"A significant depreciation of the U.S. dollar would only be
conceivable in the event of a credible partial deal between the
United States and China," Fongern said.
Increased trade tensions between Washington and Beijing have
generally been supportive of the dollar as investors view the
United States to be in better shape than its rivals to weather a
trade war.
China's onshore spot yuan CNY=CFXS ended the domestic
session at 7.1030 per dollar, the weakest such close since Oct.
10, after Beijing criticized new U.S. legislation backing
pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.
Elsewhere, the Norwegian crown NOK= weakened to its lowest
since July 2001 at 9.119 per dollar. Norway, a major exporter of
oil, is particularly sensitive to economic tensions.
Trade-oriented currencies such as the Australian dollar
AUD= and the New Zealand dollar NZD= also weakened. The kiwi
was down 0.64%.
Sterling swung around five-month highs amid a blizzard of
contradictory headlines about whether Britain and the European
Union were on the verge of agreeing a Brexit deal. The pound was last up 0.27% against the greenback.

<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Graphic: World FX rates in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>