FOREX-Dollar rebounds after improving jobs, housing data

(Recasts with dollar move, adds quotes, data, Fed speakers,
updates prices)
* Graphic: World FX rates https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E

By Karen Brettell
NEW YORK, Oct 21 (Reuters) – The dollar gained on Thursday
against a basket of currencies, erasing earlier losses, boosted
by better jobs and housing data, and as U.S. Treasury yields
rose.
Data showed that the number of Americans filing new claims
for unemployment benefits dropped to a 19-month low last week,
pointing to a tightening labor market, though a shortage of
workers could keep the pace of hiring moderate in October.

U.S. home sales also surged to an eight-month high in
September, but higher prices as supply remains tight are
squeezing first-time buyers out of the housing market.

“The dollar faded early in the session, though later found
its footing on improved jobless claims and better existing home
sales data,” said Ronald Simpson, managing director for global
currency analysis at Action Economics.
The dollar index rose to 93.76, up 0.17% on the day,
after earlier falling to 93.49. It had reached a one-year high
of 94.56 last week on mounting bets that the Federal Reserve
will need to raise interest rates sooner than previously
expected to quell rising price pressures.
Fed Governor Christopher Waller said on Thursday that the
U.S. central bank should let its $8 trillion balance sheet
shrink over the next couple of years.
The dollar was also supported as benchmark 10-year U.S.
Treasury yields rose to 1.683%, the highest since
May 13.
Risk-sensitive currencies, including the Australian dollar,
continued to weaken even as a rebound in stocks later in the day
showed improving risk sentiment.
The Australian dollar, which is a proxy for risk
appetite, fell 0.67% to $0.7465 after reaching $0.7547
overnight, the highest since July 6.
Commerzbank’s head of FICC technical analysis, Karen Jones,
said in a report on Thursday that the Australian currency was
likely to see profit taking as it reached its 55-week moving
average at $0.7516.
The New Zealand dollar, which has been boosted
since the country on Monday recorded the highest inflation
reading in over a decade, also fell 0.67% to $0.77153, after
rising to $0.7219 overnight, the highest since June 8.

The greenback dipped 0.34% against the safe-haven yen
to 113.97. It had hit a four-year high of 114.67 against the
Japanese currency on Wednesday.
Sterling slipped 0.29% to $1.3785 while the euro
was down 0.23% at $1.1623.
Bitcoin was last at $65,193, after reaching a
record high of $67,017 on Wednesday. Demand for the
cryptocurrency has increased after the launch of the first U.S.
bitcoin futures exchange-traded fund.

========================================================
Currency bid prices at 3:37PM (1937 GMT)
Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid
Previous Change
Session
Dollar index 93.7590 93.6140 +0.17% 4.199% +93.7850 +93.4940
Euro/Dollar $1.1623 $1.1650 -0.23% -4.87% +$1.1667 +$1.1623
Dollar/Yen 113.9650 114.2600 -0.34% +10.25% +114.4100 +113.6700
Euro/Yen 132.46 133.20 -0.56% +4.36% +133.3600 +132.2700
Dollar/Swiss 0.9182 0.9189 -0.08% +3.79% +0.9206 +0.9171
Sterling/Dollar $1.3785 $1.3823 -0.29% +0.89% +$1.3833 +$1.3776
Dollar/Canadian 1.2370 1.2316 +0.45% -2.84% +1.2383 +1.2289
Aussie/Dollar $0.7465 $0.7516 -0.67% -2.95% +$0.7546 +$0.7459
Euro/Swiss 1.0673 1.0706 -0.31% -1.24% +1.0718 +1.0673
Euro/Sterling 0.8429 0.8425 +0.05% -5.68% +0.8443 +0.8423
NZ $0.7153 $0.7201 -0.67% -0.40% +$0.7218 +$0.7142
Dollar/Dollar
Dollar/Norway 8.3640 8.3055 +0.59% -2.71% +8.3675 +8.3200
Euro/Norway 9.7233 9.6795 +0.45% -7.13% +9.7325 +9.6625
Dollar/Sweden 8.6104 8.5796 +0.03% +5.05% +8.6126 +8.5744
Euro/Sweden 10.0081 10.0052 +0.03% -0.68% +10.0209 +9.9959

(Reporting by Karen Brettell; additional reporting by Elizabeth
Howcroft in London; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise and
Jonathan Oatis)