Investing.com - The dollar hit session highs against the euro on Thursday, following weaker-than-forecast fourth quarter growth data from Germany, France and Italy, and was steady against the yen after the Bank of Japan left monetary policy unchanged.
During European morning trade, the dollar hit session highs against the euro, with EUR/USD down 0.55% to 1.3378.
The euro weakened broadly after official data showed larger-than-forecast contractions in German, French and Italian fourth quarter economic growth.
Germany’s economy, the euro zone’s largest, contracted by 0.6% in the in the fourth quarter, worse than expectations for a 0.5% fall. France’s economy also contracted more than forecast, with gross domestic product falling by 0.3%, while Italy’s economy contracted by 0.9%.
Elsewhere, the dollar was steady against the yen, with USD/JPY edging up 0.08% to 93.48.
The BoJ refrained from expanding its stimulus program on Thursday as investors looked ahead to a meeting of finance ministers from the G20 later in the week, amid concerns that Japan could come under pressure following the recent steep decline in the yen.
Earlier Thursday, official data showed that Japan’s economy contracted by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, compared to expectations for an uptick of 0.1%.
The greenback was trading close to six-month highs against the pound, with GBP/USD slipping 0.16% to 1.5515.
The pound remained under pressure after the Bank of England cut its outlook for growth on Wednesday and said inflation would remain above target until early 2016.
Elsewhere, the greenback was higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF rising 0.36% to 0.9203.
The greenback was mixed against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD slipping 0.09% to 1.0006, AUD/USD losing 0.11% to trade at 1.0357 and NZD/USD climbing 0.66% to 0.8507.
The New Zealand dollar rose to almost 18-month highs against the greenback after a report by Business New Zealand said that its index of manufacturing activity jumped to a seven month high of 55.2 in January, up from 50.4 in December.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.37% to 80.47.
The euro zone was to publish official data on fourth quarter growth later in the session, while the U.S. was to release government data on initial jobless claims.
During European morning trade, the dollar hit session highs against the euro, with EUR/USD down 0.55% to 1.3378.
The euro weakened broadly after official data showed larger-than-forecast contractions in German, French and Italian fourth quarter economic growth.
Germany’s economy, the euro zone’s largest, contracted by 0.6% in the in the fourth quarter, worse than expectations for a 0.5% fall. France’s economy also contracted more than forecast, with gross domestic product falling by 0.3%, while Italy’s economy contracted by 0.9%.
Elsewhere, the dollar was steady against the yen, with USD/JPY edging up 0.08% to 93.48.
The BoJ refrained from expanding its stimulus program on Thursday as investors looked ahead to a meeting of finance ministers from the G20 later in the week, amid concerns that Japan could come under pressure following the recent steep decline in the yen.
Earlier Thursday, official data showed that Japan’s economy contracted by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, compared to expectations for an uptick of 0.1%.
The greenback was trading close to six-month highs against the pound, with GBP/USD slipping 0.16% to 1.5515.
The pound remained under pressure after the Bank of England cut its outlook for growth on Wednesday and said inflation would remain above target until early 2016.
Elsewhere, the greenback was higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF rising 0.36% to 0.9203.
The greenback was mixed against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD slipping 0.09% to 1.0006, AUD/USD losing 0.11% to trade at 1.0357 and NZD/USD climbing 0.66% to 0.8507.
The New Zealand dollar rose to almost 18-month highs against the greenback after a report by Business New Zealand said that its index of manufacturing activity jumped to a seven month high of 55.2 in January, up from 50.4 in December.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.37% to 80.47.
The euro zone was to publish official data on fourth quarter growth later in the session, while the U.S. was to release government data on initial jobless claims.