* Graphic: World FX rates in 2020 https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E
(Recasts with price move, adds quote, updates prices)
By Karen Brettell
NEW YORK, April 30 (Reuters) - The dollar fell against the
euro and jumped against the Japanese yen on Thursday as
investors focused on month-end rebalancing of their portfolios.
The euro bounced and the yen fell sharply just before forex
rates were set for the month at the end of the London session.
"It looks flow-driven," said Erik Nelson, a macro strategist
at Wells Fargo in New York, especially as other markets
including bank stocks and euro zone bonds didn't see similar
moves. "Nothing has even come close to the move we've seen in
the euro."
The euro EUR= jumped 0.77% to $1.0957, the highest since
April 15.
The dollar gained 0.53% against the yen JPY= to 107.27.
The cross-currency basis swap for swapping three-month yen
LIBOR for dollar LIBOR JPYCBS3M=ICAP also turned negative for
the first time in a month, indicating strong demand for dollars
against the Japanese currency for the end of the month.
The dollar had gained against the euro earlier on Thursday
as stocks slipped and after the European Central Bank
disappointed some investors who had expected that it would
expand bond purchases to junk bonds as part of its quantitative
easing program. It was "a combination of weaker risk and short-term reaction
to the ECB announcement that there would be no QE expansion,"
said Vassili Serebriakov, an FX strategist at UBS in New York.
The dollar index against a basket of currencies =USD rose
to 99.73 after the ECB meeting, before falling back to 98.99,
down 0.50% on the day.
The greenback has weakened from more than a three-year peak
of 102.99 in late March as global central banks launched massive
stimulus measures to protect economies from the coronavirus
outbreak.
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday kept interest rates near
zero and promised to expand emergency programs as needed to help
the battered U.S. economy. Improving risk appetite, if it continues, could dent the
dollar further. Investors are more optimistic that economies
globally are closer to reopening.
"If we are seeing a bit of a rebound in risk, and I would
say the last week or so has been quite encouraging on that
front, then that would suggest that this would take some of the
upward pressure off the dollar,” said Craig Erlam, senior market
analyst at OANDA in London.
========================================================
Currency bid prices at 3:18PM (1918 GMT)
Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid
Previous Change
Session
Euro/Dollar EUR= $1.0957 $1.0873 +0.77% -2.26% +1.0971 +1.0834
Dollar/Yen JPY= 107.2700 106.7000 +0.53% -1.46% +107.3300 +106.4200
Euro/Yen EURJPY= 117.56 115.95 +1.39% -3.60% +117.6100 +115.5600
Dollar/Swiss CHF= 0.9651 0.9735 -0.86% -0.28% +0.9759 +0.9640
Sterling/Dollar GBP= 1.2598 1.2464 +1.08% -4.99% +1.2641 +1.2430
Dollar/Canadian CAD= 1.3914 1.3877 +0.27% +7.13% +1.3958 +1.3850
Australian/Doll AUD= 0.6525 0.6555 -0.46% -7.06% +0.6569 +0.6491
ar
Euro/Swiss EURCHF= 1.0577 1.0591 -0.13% -2.53% +1.0599 +1.0547
Euro/Sterling EURGBP= 0.8697 0.8719 -0.25% +2.87% +0.8742 +0.8672
NZ NZD= 0.6141 0.6131 +0.16% -8.83% +0.6175 +0.6109
Dollar/Dollar
Dollar/Norway NOK= 10.2161 10.3088 -0.90% +16.38% +10.3612 +10.2075
Euro/Norway EURNOK= 11.1980 11.2208 -0.20% +13.83% +11.2612 +11.1521
Dollar/Sweden SEK= 9.7524 9.8314 -0.13% +4.33% +9.8625 +9.7505
Euro/Sweden EURSEK= 10.6874 10.7016 -0.13% +2.08% +10.7176 +10.6365