The U.S. Dollar weakened on Friday, after a survey of purchasing managers showed U.S. business activity in the manufacturing and services sectors stalled in February and as investors worried over the fast-spreading coronavirus.
Moreover, Fears grew that the coronavirus outbreak in China will grow into an epidemic with disruptive and deadly consequences for countries around the world, after sharp rises in infections in South Korea, Italy and Iran
The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the strength of the Greenback against a basket of six major currencies, fell and finished the session at 99.14.
Over in Europe, the single currency surged against the greenback on Friday, as business activity in the eurozone picked up more than expected this month. EURUSD finished the session at 1.08486.
Meanwhile, Sterling rose against the U.S. Dollar after UK purchasing managers indexes showed British factories posted the fastest rise in output for 10 months. GBPUSD finished the session at 1.29559.
Regarding Safe havens, the Swiss Franc rose against the U.S. Dollar and finished the session at 0.97815 USDCHF. Similarly, the Japanese Yen rose against the U.S. Dollar and ended the session at 111.557.
Gold prices soared on Friday, as investors rushed to the metal’s safety due to concerns over global economic fallout from the fast-spreading coronavirus. The precious metal finished the session at 1643.10.
Over in Canada, the Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart, after data showed that domestic retail sales rose in December. USDCAD finished the session at 1.32251.
Meanwhile, the Aussie dollar rose against the U.S. Dollar on Friday and finished the session at 0.66256 AUDUSD.
Cryptocurrencies edged higher on Friday’s session. Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum rose and finished the session at 9646.70 BTCUSD, 70.44 LTCUSD, and 260.47 ETHUSD.
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