Dollar pinned near 1-month lows on weak data; pound volatile

• The dollar only managed to eke out some gains against the struggling pound.
• Sterling slid as much as 0.6pc against the dollar to $1.2748.
• The pound has surged some 5pc since last week as the negotiations between Britain and the European Union made progress.

LONDON: The dollar held near a one-month low against its rivals on Thursday as weak data cast a shadow on the outlook for the US economy in the short term with the British pound the only noticeable loser against the greenback on Brexit nerves.

US retail sales fell for the first time in seven months in September while a report from the US Federal Reserve described the economy's progress in cautious terms.

"This is a report which gives reasons to worry about the US outlook, but does not give a reason to panic," said Paul Donovan, chief economist at UBS Global Wealth Management.

Against a basket of its rivals, the dollar was just a whisker above a one-month low hit overnight. It weakened 0.3pc to a one-week low against the Swiss franc.

The dollar only managed to eke out some gains against the struggling pound, which gyrated to the progress of last-minute Brexit deal negotiations.

The leadership of Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party said it did not support proposed solutions to handling Irish border checks, a major sticking point in negotiations over the terms of Britain's departure from the bloc.

Sterling slid as much as 0.6pc against the dollar to $1.2748 , and shed 0.5pc versus the euro to as low as 86.81 pence , before steadying and recouping some losses.

The pound has surged some 5pc since last week as the negotiations between Britain and the European Union made progress, hitting a five-month high in volatile trade.

Elsewhere, the Norwegian crown weakened to an all-time low of 10.1800 against the euro. Some analysts blamed the crown's recent weakness on global trade jitters, while others said the speed and magnitude of the drop were hard to explain.

The Australian dollar held near the day's highs, up 0.3pc against the dollar after jobs data showed buoyant hiring, lowering chances of monetary easing in November.