The U.S. dollar experienced gains in late trading on Thursday as the U.S. Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) countered weak data seen earlier in the week.
The dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against six major currencies, rose by 0.44 percent to 103.6126 in late trading.
According to the U.S. Commerce Department, consumer spending, which plays a prominent role in the U.S. economy, increased by 0.8 percent last month compared to June – the highest rate in six months.
The PCE index indicated that prices rose by 0.2 percent on a monthly basis and 3.3 percent annually. The core PCE index, which excludes food and energy, showed a 0.2 percent increase from the previous month and a 4.2 percent increase over the 12 months ending in July. These figures aligned with economists’ expectations.
Additionally, the number of Americans filing for jobless benefits decreased by 4,000 to 228,000 in the week ending on August 26, as reported by the Labor Department. However, the four-week moving average of claims rose by 250 to 237,500.
“Today’s data falls within a moderate range. It didn’t offer any surprises and supports the idea of the Federal Reserve maintaining interest rates. Market expectations still strongly indicate no change at the next Fed meeting on September 20,” stated Aaron Hill, an analyst at FP Markets.
In the eurozone, official data released on Thursday revealed that the EU measure of inflation accelerated to 5.7 percent in August from 5.1 percent the previous month.
In late New York trading, the euro weakened to 1.0846 U.S. dollars from 1.0923 dollars in the previous session, while the British pound decreased to 1.2665 U.S. dollars from 1.2717 dollars.
The U.S. dollar purchased 145.4070 Japanese yen, lower than the 146.1900 Japanese yen observed in the previous session. Conversely, the U.S. dollar strengthened to 0.8830 Swiss francs from 0.8783 Swiss francs, and it weakened to 1.3514 Canadian dollars from 1.3528 Canadian dollars. Moreover, the U.S. dollar appreciated against the Swedish krona, rising to 10.9402 from 10.8297 Swedish krona.
Credit: The Star : News Feed
