* Mnuchin, Pelosi express hope for new stimulus bill
* Debate confirms uncertain election outlook, boosts dollar
* U.S. private employment rises in September
* U.S. GDP final estimate shows steep contraction
* Graphic: World FX rates in 2020 https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E
(Recasts, adds Mnuchin details, new comment, updates prices)
By Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss
NEW YORK, Sept 30 (Reuters) - The dollar fell against most currencies in choppy trading, as risk
sentiment improved after U.S. government officials expressed hope that another stimulus package could be
passed to help ease the economic impact of the coronavirus-induced recession.
The greenback slid against the yen and weakened versus currencies associated with higher risk appetite
such as the Australian, New Zealand, and Canadian dollars.
U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin both
expressed hope for a breakthrough on additional COVID-19 relief on Wednesday, as they prepared to resume
talks aimed at hammering out a bipartisan deal. "Renewed hopes for stimulus have whetted appetite for risk at the dollar's expense," said Joe Manimbo,
senior market analyst, at Western Union Business Solutions in Washington.
"It's encouraging to hear the rhetoric, but until it is signed, sealed, and delivered, the market will
be skeptical," he added.
The dollar index was last trading little changed on the day at 93.90 =USD . The index hit a two-month
high last Friday.
Tuesday's highly contentious debate between U.S. President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe
Biden boosted the dollar earlier, as it reinforced concerns that the outcome of the Nov. 3 presidential
election could be contested.
Trump and Biden battled fiercely over the Republican incumbent's record on the coronavirus pandemic,
health care and the economy in a chaotic and ill-tempered first debate marked by personal insults and
Trump's repeated interruptions. "The debate just confirmed that the election would be pretty much contested if it's anywhere close,"
said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA in New York.
The greenback was also boosted by quarter-end and month-end portfolio rebalancing, analysts said.
Demand for dollars tends to rise at the end of quarters as portfolio rebalancing and fund transfers
require currencies like the euro and sterling to be converted to dollars.
U.S. economic data was also for the most part dollar-supportive.
U.S. private employers stepped up hiring in September, with private payrolls increasing by 749,000
jobs this month, the ADP National Employment Report showed on Wednesday. Data for August was revised up to
show 481,000 jobs added instead of the 428,000 initially reported. Andrew Hunter, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics, however, said despite job gains, employment
was still more than 10 million jobs below its pre-pandemic level. "A full labor market recovery remains a
long way off," he noted.
Data also showed that U.S. gross domestic product plunged at a 31.4% annualized rate in the second
quarter, the deepest drop in output since the government started keeping records in 1947, based on the
Commerce Department's third estimate of GDP. The euro EUR=EBS was down 0.2% against the dollar at $1.1716.
Overall, the dollar was set for its worst quarter since the spring of 2017, with a fall of about 3.3%
as hopes for a swift recovery from the COVID-19 economic crash made investors exit safe havens and buy
into riskier currencies.
The dollar fell 0.1% against the yen to 105.55 JPY=EBS .
The Australian dollar rose 0.6% against the greenback to US$0.7166 AUD=D3 . The New Zealand dollar
gained 0.5% to US$0.6621 NZD=D3 . Against the Canadian dollar, the U.S. dollar fell 0.5% C$1.3319
CAD=D3 .
========================================================
Currency bid prices at 12:43PM (1643 GMT)
Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid
Previous Change
Session
Euro/Dollar EUR= $1.1716 $1.1742 -0.22% +4.51% +1.1755 +1.1686
Dollar/Yen JPY= 105.5300 105.6400 -0.10% -3.06% +105.8000 +105.4100
Euro/Yen EURJPY= 123.64 124.05 -0.33% +1.40% +124.2400 +123.5600
Dollar/Swiss CHF= 0.9216 0.9192 +0.26% -4.77% +0.9244 +0.9163
Sterling/Dollar GBP= 1.2900 1.2861 +0.30% -2.71% +1.2942 +1.2807
Dollar/Canadian CAD= 1.3321 1.3387 -0.49% +2.58% +1.3420 +1.3317
Australian/Doll AUD= 0.7169 0.7127 +0.59% +2.11% +0.7171 +0.7101
ar
Euro/Swiss EURCHF= 1.0797 1.0796 +0.01% -0.51% +1.0816 +1.0763
Euro/Sterling EURGBP= 0.9080 0.9127 -0.51% +7.40% +0.9157 +0.9067
NZ NZD= 0.6622 0.6586 +0.55% -1.69% +0.6624 +0.6570
Dollar/Dollar
Dollar/Norway NOK= 9.3607 9.4185 -0.61% +6.63% +9.4944 +9.3513
Euro/Norway EURNOK= 10.9686 11.0617 -0.84% +11.49% +11.1141 +10.9579
Dollar/Sweden SEK= 8.9565 8.9580 -0.35% -4.18% +9.0343 +8.9375
Euro/Sweden EURSEK= 10.4938 10.5306 -0.35% +0.24% +10.5735 +10.4840