Investing.com - The U.S. dollar was mixed against its major counterparts on Tuesday, following the release of soft U.S. housing data, as persistent concerns over the ongoing debt crisis in the euro zone weighed on risk appetite.
During European afternoon trade, the dollar was higher against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.17% to hit 1.3335.
Sentiment on the greenback was hit after a report showed that the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller house price index fell at an annualized rate of 3.8% in January from a year earlier, in line with expectations.
U.S. home prices in December were revised to a decline of 4.1% from a previously reported 4.0% drop.
But the euro remained under pressure as concerns over Spanish borrowing costs weighed ahead of the country’s budget statement on Friday, amid fears that the government will pull back on imposing harsh austerity measures in the face of a looming recession.
Meanwhile, a report earlier showed that an index of German consumer confidence fell unexpectedly in March.
The greenback was fractionally lower against the pound, with GBP/USD edging up 0.08% to hit 1.5982.
In the U.K., a report by the Confederation of British Industry showed that retail sale volumes improved unexpectedly in March, as its index of annual sales growth rose to zero from minus 2 last month, against expectations for a reading of minus 4.
However, the report indicated that retailers expect conditions to worsen next month amid rising unemployment and higher energy prices.
The greenback was modestly higher against the yen and the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY adding 0.40% to hit 83.15 and USD/CHF easing up 0.11% to hit 0.9039.
Elsewhere, the greenback was slightly higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD rising 0.11% to hit 0.9919, AUD/USD shedding 0.24% to hit 1.0507 and NZD/USD slipping 0.09% to hit 0.8223.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.11% to hit 79.22.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release a closely watched report on consumer confidence, while Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke was to speak at a public engagement.
During European afternoon trade, the dollar was higher against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.17% to hit 1.3335.
Sentiment on the greenback was hit after a report showed that the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller house price index fell at an annualized rate of 3.8% in January from a year earlier, in line with expectations.
U.S. home prices in December were revised to a decline of 4.1% from a previously reported 4.0% drop.
But the euro remained under pressure as concerns over Spanish borrowing costs weighed ahead of the country’s budget statement on Friday, amid fears that the government will pull back on imposing harsh austerity measures in the face of a looming recession.
Meanwhile, a report earlier showed that an index of German consumer confidence fell unexpectedly in March.
The greenback was fractionally lower against the pound, with GBP/USD edging up 0.08% to hit 1.5982.
In the U.K., a report by the Confederation of British Industry showed that retail sale volumes improved unexpectedly in March, as its index of annual sales growth rose to zero from minus 2 last month, against expectations for a reading of minus 4.
However, the report indicated that retailers expect conditions to worsen next month amid rising unemployment and higher energy prices.
The greenback was modestly higher against the yen and the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY adding 0.40% to hit 83.15 and USD/CHF easing up 0.11% to hit 0.9039.
Elsewhere, the greenback was slightly higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD rising 0.11% to hit 0.9919, AUD/USD shedding 0.24% to hit 1.0507 and NZD/USD slipping 0.09% to hit 0.8223.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.11% to hit 79.22.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release a closely watched report on consumer confidence, while Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke was to speak at a public engagement.