Dollar on track almost 1% weekly gain, as trade and Trump comments weigh on rivals

The U.S. dollar index took aim at a nearly 1% weekly gain Friday, as its rivals struggled in the face of trade-war worries and comments from President Donald Trump during his Europe trip.

The ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, -0.09% which measures the dollar against six of its rivals, was little change din positive territory at 94.829, after hitting its level since early July, according to FactSet data. For the week, the dollar gauge was set for a 0.9% gain, its biggest since the week ending June 15.

The New Zealand dollar USDNZD, +0.2366%  was in the limelight as the worst G-10 performer on Friday, after the kiwi dollar fell following weakening manufacturing data late Thursday.

The New Zealand currency last bought $0.6753, down from $0.6779 late Thursday in New York, at its lowest since the beginning of the month.

Earlier in the day, the kiwi shared this position with the British pound GBPUSD, +0.1893%  which slipped in response to comments made by President Donald Trump in an interview with the Sun newspaper. Trump slammed U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May’s “soft” Brexit plan and said it would “kill” any potential bilateral trade deal. Later on at a joint press conference, however, Trump and May spoke of a U.S.-U.K. trade deal as a possibility.

“The U.K. can’t afford to alienate either the U.S. or the EU, its two largest foreign trade partners, and will not be able to choose an ‘either-or’ solution,” said Fiona Cincotta, senior market analyst at City Index

“Trump’s comments come at a particularly bad time for May, who is facing bigger problems as her government is in a precarious balance after the resignations of David Davis and Boris Johnson earlier this week,” Cincotta said in a note.

Sterling last fetched $1.3217, up from $1.3206 late Thursday in New York, as most major currencies were trading rather rangebound ahead of the end of the week. Earlier, the pound fell to its lowest dollar level since the beginning of the month, as the uncertainty over the U.K.’s economic future is weighing on its currency.

Crowds were gathering in London on Friday morning to hold protests, including a march and rally, against the president’s visit to the U.K.