Investing.com - The U.S. dollar was broadly lower against its major counterparts on Wednesday, as hopes Greece will take the steps needed to secure its second bailout lifted market sentiment.
During European morning trade, the dollar was down against the euro, with EUR/USD adding 0.26% to hit 1.3168.
Euro zone finance ministers cancelled a meeting planned for later Wednesday to sign off on Greece’s bailout, after failing to receive assurances on how Athens plans to implement austerity measures approved in a parliamentary vote on Sunday. However, the ministers were expected to hold a teleconference ahead on a meeting on Monday.
The euro found support after the head of China’s central bank said he believes the euro zone’s debt crisis can be solved and said that China will become more involved in efforts to resolve the crisis through mechanisms such as the European Financial Stability Facility.
Also Wednesday, preliminary data showed that Germany’s economy contracted less-than-expected in the final three months of 2011, shrinking by a seasonally adjusted 0.2%, slight better than expectations for a contraction of 0.3%.
The greenback was slightly higher against the pound, with GBP/USD slipping 0.11% to hit 1.5678.
A report earlier showed that the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the U.K. rose more-than-expected in January, while the unemployment rate held steady at 8.4%, the highest level since 1996.
The greenback was fractionally higher against yen, with USD/JPY inching up 0.08% to hit 78.50.
The yen slumped to a three month low against the greenback earlier after the Bank of Japan unexpectedly announced that it would increase the size of its asset-purchase program by JPY10 trillion in an attempt to boost growth and protect the economy from the effects of the strong yen.
The greenback was down against the Swiss franc with USD/CHF sliding 0.26% to hit 0.9170.
Elsewhere, the greenback was lower against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD shedding 0.44% to hit 0.9945, AUD/USD advancing 0.71% to hit 1.0769 and NZD/USD rallying 0.83% to hit 0.8406.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that retail sales in New Zealand rose 2.2% from the third quarter, well above forecasts for a 1.3% increase.
Elsewhere, a report showed that Australian consumer confidence rose by the most in three months in February as two rate cuts by the country’s central bank late last year improved the financial outlook for households.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, slid 0.30% to hit 79.31.
Later Wednesday, the U.S. was to release a report on manufacturing activity in the New York region, as well as data on industrial production and the capacity utilization rate. In addition, the Federal Reserve was to publish the minutes of its most recent policy meeting.
During European morning trade, the dollar was down against the euro, with EUR/USD adding 0.26% to hit 1.3168.
Euro zone finance ministers cancelled a meeting planned for later Wednesday to sign off on Greece’s bailout, after failing to receive assurances on how Athens plans to implement austerity measures approved in a parliamentary vote on Sunday. However, the ministers were expected to hold a teleconference ahead on a meeting on Monday.
The euro found support after the head of China’s central bank said he believes the euro zone’s debt crisis can be solved and said that China will become more involved in efforts to resolve the crisis through mechanisms such as the European Financial Stability Facility.
Also Wednesday, preliminary data showed that Germany’s economy contracted less-than-expected in the final three months of 2011, shrinking by a seasonally adjusted 0.2%, slight better than expectations for a contraction of 0.3%.
The greenback was slightly higher against the pound, with GBP/USD slipping 0.11% to hit 1.5678.
A report earlier showed that the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the U.K. rose more-than-expected in January, while the unemployment rate held steady at 8.4%, the highest level since 1996.
The greenback was fractionally higher against yen, with USD/JPY inching up 0.08% to hit 78.50.
The yen slumped to a three month low against the greenback earlier after the Bank of Japan unexpectedly announced that it would increase the size of its asset-purchase program by JPY10 trillion in an attempt to boost growth and protect the economy from the effects of the strong yen.
The greenback was down against the Swiss franc with USD/CHF sliding 0.26% to hit 0.9170.
Elsewhere, the greenback was lower against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD shedding 0.44% to hit 0.9945, AUD/USD advancing 0.71% to hit 1.0769 and NZD/USD rallying 0.83% to hit 0.8406.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that retail sales in New Zealand rose 2.2% from the third quarter, well above forecasts for a 1.3% increase.
Elsewhere, a report showed that Australian consumer confidence rose by the most in three months in February as two rate cuts by the country’s central bank late last year improved the financial outlook for households.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, slid 0.30% to hit 79.31.
Later Wednesday, the U.S. was to release a report on manufacturing activity in the New York region, as well as data on industrial production and the capacity utilization rate. In addition, the Federal Reserve was to publish the minutes of its most recent policy meeting.