BERLIN — The 16-nation euro fell slightly Friday in early trading against the U.S. dollar as traders looked ahead to unemployment data from Washington later in the day.

The euro bought $1.3646 in early European trading, down from $1.3725 the night before in New York. The British pound also gave back some gains, falling to $1.5180 from $1.5228 in New York.

The dollar dropped widely Thursday on the back of interest rate cuts from the Bank of England and on glum U.S. retail sale figures and a rise in Americans seeking public jobless aid.

Traders were looking ahead Friday to U.S. non-farm payroll data, with the unemployment rate widely expected to grow from 6.7 percent to 7 percent in December.

They were also watching British producer price data and retail figures from the countries using the euro currency.

"The Eurozone retail sales figures will be under scrutiny as the ECB convenes next week to discuss rates and any suggestion that the more accommodative monetary policy is now helping boost consumption could again offer some indications as to when the easing will stop," said James Hughes, a market analyst at CMC Markets.