Forexpros – The U.S. dollar was mixed against its major counterparts in choppy trade on Monday, following the release of better-than-expected U.S. manufacturing data, as the downbeat economic outlook for the euro zone kept risk appetite in check.
During U.S. morning trade, the dollar was higher against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.39% to hit 1.3289.
Earlier Monday, revised data showed that manufacturing in the euro zone remained at a three-month low in March, remaining in contraction territory for the eight successive month.
A separate report showed that the unemployment rate in the region ticked up to a record high of 10.8% in February from 10.7% the previous month, broadly in line with expectations.
The greenback was slightly higher against the pound, with GBP/USD inching up 0.07% to hit 1.6017.
The pound found support after a report showing that U.K. manufacturing activity expanded at the fastest rate in 10 months in March.
The U.K. manufacturing PMI rose to 52.1 last month from an upwardly revised 51.5 in February, confounding analysts’ expectations for a drop to 50.5.
The greenback was sharply lower against the stronger yen but pushed higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY dropping 0.94% to hit 82.08 and USD/CHF adding 0.43% to hit 0.9061.
The yen weakened earlier after an index of sentiment at Japanese manufacturers declined more-than-expected in the first quarter, fanning concerns that the Bank of Japan may implement fresh easing measures.
In Switzerland, a report showed that manufacturing activity improved more-than-expected in March, expanding for the first time in seven months.
A separate report showed that Swiss retail sales rose less-than-expected in February.
Elsewhere, the greenback was lower against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD sliding 0.34% to hit 0.9948, AUD/USD climbing 0.50% to hit 1.0402 and NZD/USD advancing 0.48% to hit 0.8222.
The Australian dollar found support after data over the weekend showed that manufacturing activity in China jumped to an 11-month high in March, easing concerns over a slowdown in the world’s second largest economy. China is Australia’s largest export destination.
In Australia, official data showed earlier that building approvals fell unexpectedly in February, declining 7.8% after a 1.1% rise the previous month.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, eased up 0.10% to hit 79.19.
In the U.S., the Institute for Supply Management said its index of purchasing managers rose to 53.4 in March, up from a reading of 52.4 the previous month.
Analysts had expected the ISM index of purchasing managers to rise to 53.0.
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