West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the US Crude Oil benchmark, extends gains for the second straight day on Friday, with spot prices hovering around $66.90 during the American trading hours, up nearly 1% on the day.

Gold (XAU/USD) is trading higher on Friday as investors remain focused on Fed expectations and look ahead to key US economic data. At the time of writing, XAU/USD recovers above $3,350, pushing the price closer toward the upper boundary of a symmetrical triangle pattern.

Housing Starts in the United States (US) rose by 4.6% in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,321,000, the US Census Bureau reported on Friday. This reading followed the 9.7% decline reported in May.

United States Housing Starts (MoM) came in at 1.321M, above expectations (1.3M) in June

United States Building Permits (MoM) above forecasts (1.39M) in June: Actual (1.397M)

United States Building Permits Change up to 0.2% in June from previous -2%

United States Housing Starts Change rose from previous -9.8% to 4.6% in June

OPEC was the last of the three agencies to present its monthly update of its forecasts this week, Commerzbank's commodity analyst Barbara Lambrecht notes.

In an interview with Bloomberg on Friday, Federal Reserve (Fed) Governor Christopher Waller said that the private sector is not doing as well as it seems, per Reuters.

Oil prices have largely remained unchanged in recent days, Commerzbank's commodity analyst Barbara Lambrecht notes.

The Gold price seems to be increasingly running out of steam.

The Japanese Yen (JPY) is flat against the US Dollar (USD) and but losing ground against all of the G10 currencies in an environment of broad-based USD weakness as we head into Friday’s NA session, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret note.

US Dollar (USD) is likely to trade in a range of 7.1740/7.1880. In the longer run, USD is expected to trade in a range between 7.1550 and 7.1920, UOB Group’s FX analysts Quek Ser Leang and Peter Chia note.

The US Dollar (USD) is losing steam on Friday, pulling back from three-week highs as momentum cools. Still, the Greenback remains supported by robust US economic data released this week, which has reduced the likelihood of immediate interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve (Fed).

The Pound Sterling (GBP) is up a modest 0.2% against US Dollar (USD) as it mildly underperforms its G10 peers heading into Friday’s NA open, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret note.

The current price action appears to be part of a 147.65/148.85 range trading phase. In the longer run, USD strength has paused for now; it is expected to trade in a range of 146.90/149.20, UOB Group’s FX analysts Quek Ser Leang and Peter Chia note.

The Euro (EUR) is up 0.3% against the US Dollar (USD) and a mid-performer among the G10 as we head into Friday’s NA session, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret note.

The EUR/USD pair is posting a significant recovery on Friday, as the risk appetite observed in US and Asian extended into the European session.

The Canadian Dollar (CAD) is up modestly on the softer US Dollar (USD) on the session but is mixed against the core majors, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret note.

Positive US Dollar (USD) sentiment seen so far in July (which largely reflects short-covering demand after the USD’s rapid slide in the first half of the year) may be stalling out, Scotiabank's Chief FX Strategists Shaun Osborne and Eric Theoret note.

Australian Dollar (AUD) is likely to consolidate in a range of 0.6475/0.6535 against US Dollar (USD). In the longer run, downward momentum has built further, but AUD may consolidate first before attempting to break below 0.6455, UOB Group’s FX analysts Quek Ser Leang and Peter Chia note.

The trade-weighted US Dollar (USD) has been up 1.6% since the beginning of the month. Against the Euro (EUR), it is slightly less, but yesterday it did manage to temporarily reach 1.15 again.

India FX Reserves, USD down to $696.67B in July 7 from previous $699.74B

The Pound Sterling (GBP) trades lower against its peers, except safe-haven currencies, on Friday due to growing concerns about the United Kingdom (UK) labor market.

The US Dollar is paring previous gains against the Swiss Franc on Friday, retreating from three-week highs at 0.8060 and approaching the 0.8000 psychological level.

Dow Jones futures trade marginally higher during the European trading session, extend its winning streak for the third trading day on Friday. United States (US) equities are buoyed by strong second-quarter earnings show from the streaming platform company Netflix.

Further consolidation seems likely; the firmer underlying tone suggests a higher range of 1.3390/1.3465.

The Dollar is trading in a choppy and volatile manner against the Japanese Yen.

US Dollar (USD) was a touch softer this morning on comments from Fed’s Waller. DXY was last at 98.37 levels, OCBC's FX analysts Frances Cheung and Christopher Wong note.

The dollar index is on track for a second consecutive week of gains, having rallied over 2% since the 1 July low of 96.50.