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The U.S. dollar traded flat against the euro, yen and pound Wednesday after dismal December retail-sales data caused investors to second-guess the strength of the U.S. economy, kicking off a session of choppy trade.
The euro EURUSD, -0.20% turned positive against the dollar after the Commerce Department said retail sales dropped by a seasonally adjusted 0.9% last month to mark the biggest decline in nearly a year.
The ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, +0.19% , a measure of the dollar’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six rival currencies, was down 0.22% to 92.1030.
The dollar staged a similar recovery against the yen. It recovered to ¥117.3320, after the buck fell USDJPY, +0.38% to ¥116.1150, its lowest level since mid-November.
The pound GBPUSD, -0.05% traded at $1.5232, off its session high of $1.5270. It traded at $1.52 Tuesday afternoon.
Natural gas also rose on Wednesday, with the February contract NGG15, +0.99% up 29 cents, or 9.9%, to finish at $3.2330 per million British thermal units. That was natural gas’s largest one-day percentage increase since Feb. 19, 2014.
February heating oil HOG5, -1.02% added 2 cents, or 1.4%, to $1.6552 a gallon on Nymex. That was heating oil’s largest one-day dollar and percentage gain since Dec. 23, 2014.
Gasoline for February RBG5, -0.58% rose 8 cents, or 6.5%, to settle at $1.3507 a gallon on Nymex. That was gasoline largest one-day percentage increase since July 30, 2009.
Oil rebounded on Wednesday, snapping a three-day losing streak and gaining the most in one day in two and a half years.
Sweet crude futures for delivery in February CLG5, -0.85% gained $2.59, or 5.6%, to settle at $48.48 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That was the largest one-day percentage gain since June 29, 2012.
February Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange LCOG5, -1.11% rose $2.10, or 4.5%, to finish at $48.69 a barrel. That was also Brent’s largest one-day percentage increase since June 29, 2012. Brent had settled lower for the past four sessions.
