The dollar declined overnight and in morning trading because of weaker than expected economic data. Heading into midday trading, the EURUSD pair was trading at 1.2137, up about 0.5 percent for the session as the USDJPY pair was trading lower at 115.25, down about 0.5 percent. Dollar weakness looked to be attributed to a weaker than expected durable goods orders and new home sales. Orders of durable goods showed a decline of 2.1 percent caused by a decline in the demand for commercial aircraft. The market consensus was estimated at a decline of only 1.5 percent. Additionally, new homes sales in September rose to 1.222 million units up about 2.1 percent from 1.197 million. While the increase shows rebounding from August’s plunge, the figure was still lower than expectations of 1.25 million.
The U.S. equity markets opened lower on the morning. At 11:00 AM ET, the Dow Jones Industrials traded lower at 10,300, down 45 points or 0.44 percent. The NASDAQ showed loses as well, trading at around 2,084, down about 15 points or 0.73 percent. The S&P 500 index slipped about 4 points or 0.35 percent, trading at 1,187. Some notable movers in early morning trading were Exxon Mobile, General Motors Corp, and Verizon. Exxon Mobile shares increased 0.73 percent due to an increase in earnings over the past year. Exxon Mobile reported earnings of 9.92 billion (1.58 per share) for the third quarter, up from 5.68 billion (0.88 per share) in the previous year.
Separately, General Motors shares plunged about 5 percent after the SEC subpoenaed data regarding their accounting practices. GM has denied rumors of the company filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. .
The US bond market gained in overnight and early morning trading as yields on the 10-year dipped 0.04 percent to 4.55 percent. Fears from General Motors and weak economic data provided some relief to the bond market as investors found safety in greenback treasuries.