Dollar Mixed After Early Rise, Wednesday, June 13, 2007 4:15:37 PM

After a strong start to the day, the U.S. dollar saw mixed results against the other majors on Wednesday in New York. The buck touched its highest level against the yen since November of 2002. The greenback gave back early gains to the euro and sterling, however. Trading took place amid the release of stronger-than-expected data on retail sales and import/export prices from the U.S.

The dollar gave back early gains against the sterling on Wednesday and by the early afternoon in New York was near its overnight levels. The dollar made its advance following the release of data showing UK claimant count came in lower than expected at 2.7% in May. The dollar touched a 2-day high of 1.9673 at 7 a.m. Eastern Time. It maintained that mark for about 90 minutes before slipping back to its overnight levels with a sharp decline that lasted until about 10:30 a.m. Trading was flat in the afternoon and the pair traded at 1.9725 at 3:30 p.m.

The dollar was down against the euro on Wednesday in New York amid choppy trading. The greenback climbed to 1.3262 at 5 a.m. Eastern Time, its highest level against the euro since late March. The dollar soon moved off its high, though, after the release of data showing Euro zone employment rose 0.4% sequentially in the first quarter. It added further losses at around 10 a.m. ET and slipped below its overnight levels. The buck attempted a rally in the early afternoon, but gave back the gains shortly after.

The greenback gained to a four-and-a-half-year-high on the yen during Wednesday trading in New York. The greenback moved higher following the release of revised data showing Japanese industrial output fell 0.2% on the month in April. The buck gained to 122.47 at 6:30 am Eastern Time. The currencies traded in a range for several hours near that mark before rallying again at around 3 p.m. It touched 122.71 at 3:45 p.m.

The U.S. Department of Labor released its report on import and export prices in the month of May on Wednesday, showing a notable slowdown in the pace of import price growth and a modest increase in export prices. The report showed that import prices rose 0.9 percent in May after rising 1.4 percent in April and 1.6 percent in March. With the increase, import prices rose at an annual rate of 1.1 percent.

The U.S. Commerce Department revealed Wednesday that retail sales climbed 1.4% in May. This represented the largest gain in 16 month and came in well above the increase expected by economists. A larger-than-expected rise in retail sales points to possible strength in consumer spending, but most experts are more worried about the implications for inflation.

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