* Dollar continues to take cues from economy instead of
sentiment
* Ethereum marks new record high while bitcoin takes a
breather
* Graphic: World FX rates https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E
By Kevin Buckland
TOKYO, Feb 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar paused on Friday
after its biggest loss in 10 days as disappointing U.S. labour
market data bruised optimism for a speedy recovery from the
COVID-19 pandemic.
The greenback continued to buck its traditional role as a
safe-harbour currency, falling in sympathy with U.S. stocks
overnight after an unexpected increase in weekly jobless claims
soured the economic outlook. The British pound traded near an almost three-year high
reached overnight, when it surged the most in more than a month,
amid Britain's aggressive vaccination programme.
The dollar index =USD was little changed at 90.561 in the
Asian session, after a 0.4% decline overnight cut short a
two-day winning streak. For the week, the gauge is now back to
more or less break-even.
The string of soft labour data is weighing on the dollar
even as other indicators have shown resilience, and as President
Joe Biden's pandemic relief efforts take shape, including a
proposed $1.9 trillion spending package.
"The prospect of a massive U.S. fiscal stimulus plus a
successful vaccine roll-out are solid arguments to bet on a U.S.
recovery this year," Rodrigo Catril, senior foreign exchange
strategist at National Australia Bank in Sydney, wrote in a
client note.
"But the overnight jobless claims data serve as a reminder
of the unevenness of the recovery so far."
Sterling GBP= was mostly flat at $1.3965 on Friday
following a 0.8% jump in the previous session, when it rose as
high as $1.3986 for the first time since April 2018.
The euro EUR=EBS was little changed at $1.2093 after
rising 0.4% overnight.
The dollar bought 105.555 yen JPY=EBS , little changed
following a two-day retreat from the five-month high of 106.225
reached Wednesday.
Many analyst expect the dollar to weaken over the course of
the year as it has traditionally done during times of global
economic recovery, though it might take some time to develop.
"It looks to me like there's some exhaustion in that
just-straight global reflation theme," leading the dollar to
trend largely sideways for now, said Daniel Been, head of FX at
ANZ in Sydney.
The trade should reignite once fiscal stimulus starts to
kick in and services start to reopen in a more fulsome way, he
said.
"We see it broadly as a dollar-negative story," he said.
In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin BTC=BTSP traded at
$51,335.71, consolidating for a second day after hitting a
record $52,640 on Wednesday in a rally fuelled by endorsements
from Tesla Inc TSLA.O and others. It has risen about 78% so
far in 2021, after more than quadrupling last year.
Smaller rival ethereum ETH=BTSP rose to a record $1,951.89
on Friday, just pipping the previous day's high, before trading
at $1,909.41. It has surged some 162% this year.
On Thursday, chipmaker Nvidia Corp NVDA.O announced a new
processor designed specifically for mining ethereum.
========================================================
Currency bid prices at 535 GMT
Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid
Previous Change
Session
Euro/Dollar EUR=EBS $1.2094 $1.2091 +0.03% -1.01% +1.2098 +1.2083
Dollar/Yen JPY=D3 105.5620 105.6600 -0.07% +2.23% +105.7270 +105.5900
Euro/Yen EURJPY= 127.69 127.79 -0.08% +0.61% +127.8500 +127.6600
Dollar/Swiss CHF=EBS 0.8961 0.8960 +0.04% +1.32% +0.8969 +0.8958
Sterling/Dollar GBP=D3 1.3968 1.3972 -0.01% +2.25% +1.3973 +1.3952
Dollar/Canadian CAD=D3 1.2698 1.2678 +0.17% -0.27% +1.2712 +1.2673
Aussie/Dollar AUD=D3 0.7772 0.7769 +0.07% +1.07% +0.7775 +0.7758
NZ NZD=D3 0.7216 0.7220 +0.00% +0.54% +0.7224 +0.7206
Dollar/Dollar
All spots FX=
Tokyo spots AFX=
Europe spots EFX=
Volatilities FXVOL=
Tokyo Forex market info from BOJ TKYFX
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World FX rates https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E
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