Investing.com - The dollar held steady against most major global currencies on Thursday after the Federal Reserve said it would stand ready to further stimulate the U.S. economy should the need arise but would remain on standby for now.
In Asian trading on Thursday, EUR/USD was up 0.07% at 1.2235.
The U.S. Federal Reserve wrapped up a two-day monetary policy meeting earlier and made no changes to interest rates or policy in general, reiterating earlier stances that it will stimulate the economy if recovery further deteriorates.
Meanwhile, the U.S. economy continues to grow though its pace of recovery appears to be moderating.
"Growth in employment has been slow in recent months, and the unemployment rate remains elevated. Business fixed investment has continued to advance. Household spending has been rising at a somewhat slower pace than earlier in the year," the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Fed's monetary policy body, said in a statement.
"Despite some further signs of improvement, the housing sector remains depressed. Inflation has declined since earlier this year, mainly reflecting lower prices of crude oil and gasoline, and longer-term inflation expectations have remained stable."
The Fed's benchmark interest rate, the fed funds target, remained in place at 0.25%.
The Fed added economic conditions meriting loose policies will likely stick around through the end of 2014.
However, the U.S. central bank said it would stay on the sidelines with no plans, for now, to stimulate the economy via tools such as quantitative easing, which are bond purchases from banks that flood the economy with liquidity, weakening the dollar in the process to spur recovery.
"The Committee will closely monitor incoming information on economic and financial developments and will provide additional accommodation as needed to promote a stronger economic recovery and sustained improvement in labor market conditions in a context of price stability," the Fed added.
Surprisingly strong data on U.S. private sector employment further bolstered the greenback against other currencies though profit taking took it down at times..
U.S. payroll processor ADP reported earlier that the private-sector increased headcount by a seasonally adjusted 163,000 in July, beating expectations for an increase of 120,000.
June’s figure was revised down to 172,000, slightly lower that the initial estimate of 176,000.
The ADP figure serves as a weather vane for the official unemployment rate, which will publish on Friday.
Manufacturing data out of the U.S. disappointed, however.
The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing purchasing managers index hit 49.8 in July, up slightly from a three-year low of 49.7 reached in June though below market forecasts for a reading of 50.2.
The greenback, meanwhile, was up against the pound, with GBP/USD trading down 0.03% at 1.5532.
The dollar was up against the yen, with USD/JPY trading up 0.08% at 78.49, and down against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF trading down 0.08% at 0.9821.
The dollar was down against its cousins in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, with USD/CAD down 0.03% at 1.0053, AUD/USD up 0.04% at 1.0463 and NZD/USD up 0.01% at 0.8077.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.02% at 83.21.
In the eurozone later Thursday, the ECB will announce its benchmark interest rate and will follow up with a press conference with central bank president Mario Draghi to discuss the factors affecting the bank’s policy decision and the economic outlook.
Also on Thursday, U.S. is to release government data on initial jobless claims and factory orders, a leading indicator of production.
In Asian trading on Thursday, EUR/USD was up 0.07% at 1.2235.
The U.S. Federal Reserve wrapped up a two-day monetary policy meeting earlier and made no changes to interest rates or policy in general, reiterating earlier stances that it will stimulate the economy if recovery further deteriorates.
Meanwhile, the U.S. economy continues to grow though its pace of recovery appears to be moderating.
"Growth in employment has been slow in recent months, and the unemployment rate remains elevated. Business fixed investment has continued to advance. Household spending has been rising at a somewhat slower pace than earlier in the year," the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Fed's monetary policy body, said in a statement.
"Despite some further signs of improvement, the housing sector remains depressed. Inflation has declined since earlier this year, mainly reflecting lower prices of crude oil and gasoline, and longer-term inflation expectations have remained stable."
The Fed's benchmark interest rate, the fed funds target, remained in place at 0.25%.
The Fed added economic conditions meriting loose policies will likely stick around through the end of 2014.
However, the U.S. central bank said it would stay on the sidelines with no plans, for now, to stimulate the economy via tools such as quantitative easing, which are bond purchases from banks that flood the economy with liquidity, weakening the dollar in the process to spur recovery.
"The Committee will closely monitor incoming information on economic and financial developments and will provide additional accommodation as needed to promote a stronger economic recovery and sustained improvement in labor market conditions in a context of price stability," the Fed added.
Surprisingly strong data on U.S. private sector employment further bolstered the greenback against other currencies though profit taking took it down at times..
U.S. payroll processor ADP reported earlier that the private-sector increased headcount by a seasonally adjusted 163,000 in July, beating expectations for an increase of 120,000.
June’s figure was revised down to 172,000, slightly lower that the initial estimate of 176,000.
The ADP figure serves as a weather vane for the official unemployment rate, which will publish on Friday.
Manufacturing data out of the U.S. disappointed, however.
The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing purchasing managers index hit 49.8 in July, up slightly from a three-year low of 49.7 reached in June though below market forecasts for a reading of 50.2.
The greenback, meanwhile, was up against the pound, with GBP/USD trading down 0.03% at 1.5532.
The dollar was up against the yen, with USD/JPY trading up 0.08% at 78.49, and down against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF trading down 0.08% at 0.9821.
The dollar was down against its cousins in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, with USD/CAD down 0.03% at 1.0053, AUD/USD up 0.04% at 1.0463 and NZD/USD up 0.01% at 0.8077.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.02% at 83.21.
In the eurozone later Thursday, the ECB will announce its benchmark interest rate and will follow up with a press conference with central bank president Mario Draghi to discuss the factors affecting the bank’s policy decision and the economic outlook.
Also on Thursday, U.S. is to release government data on initial jobless claims and factory orders, a leading indicator of production.