Forex Pros – The U.S. dollar was broadly higher against its major counterparts on Thursday, with the euro sliding to a six-week low as a sell-off in commodities sapped investor demand for riskier assets.
During European afternoon trade, the greenback was up against the euro, with EUR/USD sliding 0.21% to hit 1.4164.
Speculation over whether Greece will receive more bailout funding continued, amid rising expectations that the country will eventually need to restructure its debt.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD shedding 0.50% to hit 1.6260.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that manufacturing production in the U.K. rose less-than-expected in March.
Meanwhile, the greenback was lower against the yen but higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY slipping 0.18% to hit 81.89 and USD/CHF easing up 0.07% to hit 0.8882.
Elsewhere, the greenback was higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD climbing 0.32% to hit 0.9672, AUD/USD tumbling 1.02% to hit 1.0589 and NZD/USD shedding 0.36% to hit 0.7860.
Earlier Thursday, a government report showing an unexpected drop in Australian employment in April dampened expectations for an interest rate hike by the country’s central bank.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.24%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish a report on initial jobless claims as well as official data on producer price inflation and retail sales. In addition, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was to testify before the Senate Banking Committee in Washington.
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