Having given several speeches on the economy and just cut rates to match their modern-era low at 1%, Fed chair Bernanke stuck to mortgage finance in his speech at UC Berkeley.

Major currencies are meandering as the market keeps an eye on the clock. Equities are firm headed into the final hour of the week, a supportive factor for EUR/JPY and the individual legs of that cross. EUR/USD trades at 1.2740 and USD/JPY at 98.50.