Forexpros – The dollar strengthened in Asian trading Wednesday when investors returned to the greenback after ditching it for most of the day in earlier European and U.S. sessions to invest in stocks, commodities and other currencies.
The greenback on Wednesday was up against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.21% to hit 1.3024.
In the United States, the Institute of Supply Management’s manufacturing index rose to 53.9 in December from 52.7 in November.
A reading of 50 or more signals economic growth, and economists participating in a Bloomberg survey estimated a median figure of 53.5.
Similar manufacturing output figures beat expectations around the world, including in China, a global export powerhouse.
Manufacturing data, coupled with better-than-expected unemployment figures out of Germany, sparked a dollar selloff, as investors sought to snap up riskier assets although the trend reversed itself in Asian trading on Wednesday, and the greenback regained some of its strength.
Meanwhile, the dollar was stronger against the pound, with Cable dropping 0.07% to hit 1.56383.
The greenback was down 0.08% against the yen, with USD/JPY was trading at 76.67, and up against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF up 0.18% at 0.9338.
The greenback was up against its counterparts in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, with USD/CAD up 0.27% at 1.0134, AUD/USD down 0.41% to 1.0334 and NZD/USD down 0.23% at 0.7876.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.13% at 80.06.
Market watchers are casting their eyes towards Friday, when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics will unveil its December unemployment report, a crucial economic indicator for the U.S. economy.
On Thursday, the ADP National Employment Report will serve as a warm-up for the official jobless rates, shedding light into U.S. private-sector hiring.
Weekly jobless claims come out in the U.S. on Thursday as well, while unemployment rates are due out in Europe and Canada also on Friday.
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