Investing.com – The dollar traded lower against a basket of currencies on Friday as consumer confidence data fell short of expectations while ongoing fears over delays to corporate tax cuts continued to weigh on sentiment.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell by 0.10% to 94.33.
The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index, showed consumer confidence in the economy cooled, as the index showed a preliminary reading for November of 97.8, missing expectations for reading of 100.7.
Meanwhile, fears of delays to corporate tax cuts until 2019 continued to weigh on the greenback after U.S. Senate Republicans unveiled a tax plan on Thursday that was significantly different from the House of Representatives’ version.
Senators said that they wanted to slash the corporate rate to 20% from 35%, but in 2019, which differs from the GOP plan to slash the corporate rate immediately.
The pound and euro were the main beneficiaries of a slump in the dollar, as both currency added to Thursday’s gains against the greenback.
GBP/USD rose 0.36% to $1.1319, while EUR/USD tacked on 0.14% to $1.1659. The rise in sterling comes after manufacturing and manufacturing growth topped expectations.
USD/CAD was flat at C$1.2687 while USD/JPY rose 0.04% to Y113.52.