Investing.com - U.S. new home sales rose less than expected in July, dampening optimism over the health of the housing sector, official data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the U.S. Commerce Department said new home sales rose by 5.4% to a seasonally adjusted 507,000 units last month, compared to expectations for a gain of 5.8% to 510,000.
New home sales in June were revised down to 481,000 units from a previously reported 482,000 units.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.1472 from around 1.1463 ahead of the release of the data, GBP/USD was at 1.5760 from 1.5759 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 119.64 from 119.66 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 94.20, compared to 94.28 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock markets were higher after the open. The Dow 30 rose 2.1%, the S&P 500 tacked on 2.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite surged 3%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,140.40 a troy ounce, compared to $1,141.50 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $39.29 a barrel from $39.34 earlier.