The Hong Kong dollar was trapped in narrow ranges after a firm opening on Monday amid a dearth of fresh market-moving news, dealers said. The local currency was trading at 7.7982/84 per US dollar versus a morning high of 7.7974 and little changed from 7.7987/88 in late Asian trade on Friday. It traded firmer earlier in the day after the US dollar fell against major currencies in the wake of a softer-than-expected US consumer confidence report.
"Some arbitrage trades limited the local currency's gains. Longer-term, the US dollar is likely to remain weak due to the huge deficit shortfall," said a dealer from a European bank.