The dollar maintains its stability amid mixed economic indicators

The dollar exchange rate stabilized today, amid escalating geopolitical tensions and investors evaluating a number of economic data and anticipating an important jobs report that will be issued tomorrow, Friday.

The euro settled at $1.1678 in the early Asian trading hours and is heading for a slight weekly decline. The British pound reached $1.34605 and the yen stabilized at 156.78 per dollar, amid traders’ reluctance to enter into large bets.

The Australian dollar recorded $0.6721, which is slightly below the highest level in 15 months that it touched earlier this week, while the New Zealand dollar saw little change at $0.5769.

Data showed that the labor market in the United States seemed stuck in a state of “no hiring, no firing,” and available job opportunities decreased more than expected in November and employment declined.

However, service sector activity rose unexpectedly in December, indicating that the economy ended 2025 in a strong position.

The focus now is on the non-farm payrolls report scheduled for release tomorrow, Friday.

Traders expect at least two rate cuts this year, even though the divided Federal Reserve (US central bank) hinted in December at only one more cut in 2026.

Markets widely expect the US Federal Reserve to hold interest rates in January.

The dollar index, which measures the performance of the US currency against six competing currencies, settled at 98.737 and is heading for slight gains this week.

Last year was the worst for the dollar since 2017, and analysts now expect another year of decline, albeit at a slower pace.

It seems that the markets have mostly absorbed geopolitical concerns around the world after the American intervention in Venezuela and the escalation of tension between China and Japan in the recent period.