Forexpros –
Forexpros – The U.S. dollar moved lower against its major counterparts in Asian trade Wednesday, as better than expected service sector data failed to overcome concerns over European debt and another weak showing from Wall Street.
In mid-day Asian trade, the greenback was lower against the euro, with EUR/USD gaining 0.22% to hit 1.4030.
Earlier Tuesday, the Swiss franc plunged versus its major counterparts, including the euro, as the Swiss National Bank set a floor for EUR/CHF at 1.20 in an effort to lessen the negative effects a strong currency would have on exports.
The move by Switzerland’s central bank comes at a critical time for negotiations between European finance officials who are debating the details of the European Financial Stability Facility, a bailout fund for debt threatened euro-zone members.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Institute of Supply Management reported its non-manufacturing purchasing manager’s index rose by 0.6 in August to 53.3 from 52.7 the previous month.
Economists had forecast the index to fall to 51.0 for the month.
An ISM manufacturing index above 50.0 indicates expansion in the non-manufacturing sector, while below 50.0 is a sign of general contraction.
Wall Street shares rallied from session lows but still finished in the red for a third consecutive session, dragged down by European debt jitters and last week’s disappointing U.S. jobs data.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.9%, the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.26%, and the S&P 500 shed 0.74%.
Meanwhile, the greenback was down against the British pound, with GBP/USD up by 0.18% to hit 1.5973.
The dollar was lower against both the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc with USD/JPY dropping 0.32% to hit 77.40, and USD/CHF down by 0.38% to hit 0.8589.
The greenback was lower against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts with USD/CAD down 0.11% to hit 0.9891, AUD/USD higher by 0.87% to hit 1.0575, and NZD/USD gaining 0.30% to hit 0.8251.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.30% at 75.83.
Later Wednesday, Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans was scheduled to speak on the U.S. economic outlook at the Futures & Options Expo in Chicago.
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