Forex Pros – The U.S. dollar pared losses against almost all of its major counterparts on Thursday, ahead of the release of crucial U.S. data on first quarter gross domestic product and a report on initial jobless claims.
During European afternoon trade, the greenback was down against the euro, with EUR/USD easing up 0.11% to hit 1.4804.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that unemployment in Germany fell more-than-expected in April, putting the adjusted total at a near two-decade low.
The greenback was also lower against the pound, with GBP/USD climbing 0.17% to hit 1.6655.
A report released earlier Thursday showed that consumer confidence in the U.K. unexpectedly tumbled to its lowest level since February 2009 in April.
Elsewhere, the greenback was lower against the yen and the Swiss franc with USD/JPY shedding 0.49% to hit 81.73 and USD/CHF dipping 0.05% to hit 0.8740.
The Bank of Japan kept monetary policy steady earlier Thursday, in a widely expected decision.
Meanwhile, the greenback was also down against its Canadian and Australian counterparts but rose sharply against its New Zealand cousin, with USD/CAD easing down 0.02% to hit 0.9496, AUD/USD climbing 0.20% to hit 1.0891 and NZD/USD tumbling 0.99% to hit 0.8002.
Earlier in the day, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand kept its benchmark interest rate at a record low of 2.5% and called the local currency’s rise “unwelcome”.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.16%.
On Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that the central bank, which left interest rates unchanged, “will complete” its USD600 billion bond-buying program by the end of June but indicated that the Fed was in no rush to tighten monetary policy with the jobs market still in a “very, very deep hole.”
ForexPros.com
