Forexpros – The euro inched down against the U.S. dollar in Asian trade Thursday, following gains on both the European and U.S. stock markets with investor eyes focused on the upcoming meeting of U.S. Federal Reserve officials.
EUR/USD hit 1.4407 in early Asian trade, the pair’s lowest since last Wednesday; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.4414, easing 0.03%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.4260, last Friday’s low, and resistance at 1.4500, Tuesday’s high.
Earlier in the day, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that core durable goods orders jumped by a seasonally adjusted 4% in July, after rising 0.6% the previous month.
Market expectation were for orders for U.S. durable goods to fall by 0.4% last month.
Orders for automobiles in July surged 11.5%, the largest gain in eight years. Excluding transportation, durable goods orders rose only 0.7%.
Also on Wednesday, Europe’s Institute of Economic Research reported that Germany’s Information and Foschung (Ifo) business climate index fell more than expected last month to 108.7 from 112.9 in June.
Analysts had forecast the Ifo index to hit 111.0 in July.
European markets closed higher in Wednesday trade, with France’s CAC 40 climbing 1.8%, Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 1.3%, and Germany’s DAX finished higher by 2.7%.
A final hour push on Wall Street helped U.S. stocks to post their third straight day of gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.3%, the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.9%, and the S&P 500 was lifted 1.3%.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was scheduled to speak Friday, during this week’s annual meeting of Fed officials in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
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