The US Dollar Exchange Rate was trading in the region of 0.7481 against the Euro as of 14.19 pm
Petroleum might be lighter than water but apparently it’s heavyweight enough to boost the US economy. According to statistics compiled by the Commerce department, the US trade deficit narrowed by more-than-expected in December, largely thanks to that useful oil.
Record level exports of petroleum helped the gap to contract by 20.7 per cent, outperforming all economists’ expectations.
The US trade deficit now stands at 38 billion Dollars, the lowest level for three years and 8 billion less than the average estimate put forward by economists.
The figures show that in the final month of last year exports netted 186.4 billion Dollars after advancing 2.1 per cent whilst imports fell 2.7 per cent to 224.9 billion.
This data has upped the probability that revised figures will show that the US economy scraped a gain in the last three months of 2012.
As Ryan Wang, a HSBC Securities USA economist, proposed: ‘There’s been some encouraging news out of Asia and a number of Asian economies seem to be in an upswing. That should help US exports grow modestly this year.’
Another industry expert added: ‘The key phrase here when we talk about the world economy in 2013 is a bit better but still weak. In the United States, we’re becoming increasingly optimistic [and] in China we’re expecting improvement in 2013.’
The strength of the US Dollar could also prove key to US economic recovery. Although the ‘Greenback’ has advanced over the last 24 hours, due to a bout of risk aversion triggered by economic developments in Europe, as of last Friday the American currency was down 4 per cent from a peak achieved in the middle of last year.
This could contribute to further narrowing of the US trade deficit as a weaker currency increases the attractiveness of the nation’s exports.
Earlier today the ‘Greenback’ declined by 1.6 per cent against the Japanese Yen as the latter currency was boosted by fears regarding the rapidity of its decline.
The US Dollar continues to trade higher against the Euro today as ECB President Mario Draghi’s warning about the strength of the Euro reverberates. The common currency is currently trading within touching distance of a two week low against its American rival.
Current US Dollar Exchange Rates
The US Dollar to Euro exchange rate is currently trading at 0.7481
The US Dollar to Pound Sterling exchange rate is currently trading at 0.6322
The US Dollar to Canadian Dollar exchange rate is currently trading at 1.0022
The US Dollar to Australian Dollar exchange rate is currently trading at 0.9693
The US Dollar to New Zealand Dollar exchange rate is currently trading at 1.1956
The US Dollar to Emirati Dirham exchange rate is currently trading at 3.6728
The US Dollar to Swiss Franc is currently trading at 0.9166
The US Dollar to Japanese Yen exchange rate is currently trading at 92.4000
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