Forex Pros – The U.S. dollar was broadly lower against its major counterparts on Tuesday, ahead of a two-day U.S. Federal Reserve policy meeting which was expected to give no hint of imminent policy tightening.
During European afternoon trade, the greenback was lower against the euro, with EUR/USD easing up 0.17% to hit 1.4606.
An auction of Spanish government debt met with strong demand earlier in the day, easing concerns that the indebted country may be the next euro zone member to seek an international bailout.
But the greenback edged higher against the pound, with GBP/USD dipping 0.10% to hit 1.6481.
Earlier Tuesday, a report by Confederation of British Industry showed that U.K. manufacturing orders unexpectedly slumped this month.
Elsewhere, the greenback was down against the yen and the Swiss franc with USD/JPY sliding 0.15% to hit 81.69 and USD/CHF shedding 0.44% to hit 0.8772.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that Switzerland’s trade surplus narrowed more-than-expected in March, as export growth slowed, weighed by the strong franc.
In addition, the greenback was lower against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand cousins, with USD/CAD dipping 0.07% to hit 0.9535, AUD/USD rising 0.27% to hit 1.0750 and NZD/USD rising 0.53% to hit 0.8035.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.13%.
Later Tuesday, the U.S. was to publish reports on house price inflation and consumer confidence, as well as official data on manufacturing activity in Richmond.
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