Investing.com - The dollar was mostly higher against other major currencies on Tuesday, as upbeat U.S. data supported the case for a rate hike by the Federal Reserve before the end of the year.
EUR/USD slipped 0.21% to 1.1187, the lowest since September 30.
The greenback strengthened after the Institute for Supply Management said on Monday that its index of manufacturing activity rose to 51.5 last month from August’s reading of 49.4. Analysts had forecast a lesser increase to 50.3.
The reports added to optimism over the strength of the ecnomy after Friday’s upbeat U.S. consumer sentiment data.
USD/JPY climbed 0.60% to a two-week high of 102.24, while GBP/USD held steady at 1.2837, the lowest since July 6.
Sterling remained under pressure amid concerns over a ‘hard brexit’ after British Prime Minister Theresa May set a March deadline to begin the UK's formal departure process from the European Union.
Meanwhile, AUD/USD edged down 0.14% to trade at 0.7666 after the Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 1.50% at its first policy meeting chaired by new governor Philip Lowe.
"The board judged that holding the stance of policy unchanged at this meeting would be consistent with sustainable growth in the economy and achieving the inflation target over time," the RBA said in a statement.
Earlier in the day, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said that building approvals declined by 1.8% in August, compared to expectations for a 7.0% drop. Building approvals climbed 12.0% in July, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 11.3% gain.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.27% at 95.92, the highest since September 21.