The dollar had fell sharply Friday, coming under heavy pressure amid worries about giant mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with continued tensions with Iran, which boosted the price of crude to a new record high above $147 a barrel.
The dollar index which measures the U.S. unit against a basket of major rivals, stood at 71.93 down from 72.49 in late trade Thursday. Labor Department said import prices rose 2.6% in June import price index, led by higher crude oil and natural gas prices. Economists expected another 2% gain in June. A separate report showed the trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in May to $59.8 billion from $60.9 billion.
While Wall Street remained rocked by concerns over the fate of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, whose shares plunged for most of the session before getting a respite on a report that the Federal Reserve had opened its discount window to the government-sponsored firms.
The euro was 0.9% higher against the dollar at $1.5931. The greenback also fell 0.8% against the Japanese unit to trade at 106.21 yen, and slipped 1.2% against the Swiss currency to 1.0153 francs.
Crude-oil futures first hit a record $147.47 a barrel on speculation that Israel may be nearer to launching an attack on Iran and on worries that supplies in Nigeria and Brazil may be disrupted. Crude for August delivery closed up $3.43, or 2.4%, at $145.08 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.