Foreign Exchange for Thursday, May 9, 1985 : Dollar Lower in Skittish Trading

The dollar finished lower Thursday in foreign exchange trading although a late-afternoon rebound in the United States lifted it above the lows it reached in Europe.

Traders described the currency markets as nervous.

“The market seems to be trading on its own,” said Martin McAuley, vice president for foreign exchange at Continental Illinois National Bank & Trust in Chicago.

He said the dollar moved in a wide range for most of the session, but failed to show a strong sense of direction. Most traders avoided taking big positions in the market because trading was so volatile, he added.

The dollar rebounded in late afternoon trading in the United States after the European markets closed.

“It has left people shaking their heads, not knowing which way the market is going,” said Craig Sloane, a foreign exchange analyst at Pershhing Futures.