Investing.com - The dollar remained mostly lower against the other major currencies on Thursday, as demand for the greenback remained under pressure after disappointing U.S. service sector data and amid ongoing U.S. budget worries.
During U.S. morning trade, the dollar was steady against the yen, with USD/JPY easing 0.02% to 97.33.
The Institute of Supply Management said its non-manufacturing purchasing manager's index fell to a three-month low of 54.4 in September from a reading of 58.6 in August. Analysts had expected the index to decline to 57.4 last month.
Separately, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending September 28 increased by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 308,000.
Jobless claims for the preceding week were revised up to a gain of 307,000 from a previously reported increase of 305,000. Analysts had expected U.S. jobless claims to rise by 6,000 to 313,000 last week.
The data came as investors continued to weigh the implications of a protracted U.S. government shutdown.
President Barack Obama met with Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress on Wednesday, although a solution still seemed unlikely.
Markets were also considering how the political deadlock in Washington will impact negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury Department has estimated will be reached by October 17.
Moody's Investors Service warned that a failure to raise the debt limit would result in a worse outcome for financial markets than a government shutdown.
The euro hit fresh eight-month highs against the dollar, with EUR/USD adding 0.31% to 1.3622.
Official data earlier showed that retail sales in the euro zone rose 0.7% in August, beating expectations for a 0.2% gain, after an upwardly revised 0.5% increase the previous month.
In addition, Markit research group said its final reading for the euro zone services PMI rose to 52.2 in September, from a reading of 52.1 in August. Analysts had expected the index to remain unchanged last month.
Germany's services PMI declined to 53.7 last month, from a reading of 54.4 in August, compared to expectations for the index to remain unchanged.
The dollar rose against the pound but remained close to nine-month lows, with GBP/USD down 0.38% to 1.6163.
Markit said the U.K. services PMI ticked down to 60.3 in September, from a reading of 60.5 the previous month, compared to expectations for a decline to 60.0.
A separate report showed that house price inflation in the U.K. rose 0.3% last month, confounding expectations for a 0.5% increase, after a downwardly revised 0.3% uptick in August.
The dollar was lower against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF slipping 0.28% to 0.9002.
Elsewhere, the greenback was mixed against its Australian, New Zealand and Canadian counterparts, with AUD/USD down 0.01% to 0.9386, NZD/USD shedding 0.47% to trade at 0.8291 and USD/CAD edging 0.20% lower to 1.0316.
The export-related currencies found some support after a government report showed that China's non-manufacturing PMI climbed to a six-month high of 55.4 in September from 53.9 in August.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.16% to 79.86.
During U.S. morning trade, the dollar was steady against the yen, with USD/JPY easing 0.02% to 97.33.
The Institute of Supply Management said its non-manufacturing purchasing manager's index fell to a three-month low of 54.4 in September from a reading of 58.6 in August. Analysts had expected the index to decline to 57.4 last month.
Separately, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending September 28 increased by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 308,000.
Jobless claims for the preceding week were revised up to a gain of 307,000 from a previously reported increase of 305,000. Analysts had expected U.S. jobless claims to rise by 6,000 to 313,000 last week.
The data came as investors continued to weigh the implications of a protracted U.S. government shutdown.
President Barack Obama met with Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress on Wednesday, although a solution still seemed unlikely.
Markets were also considering how the political deadlock in Washington will impact negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury Department has estimated will be reached by October 17.
Moody's Investors Service warned that a failure to raise the debt limit would result in a worse outcome for financial markets than a government shutdown.
The euro hit fresh eight-month highs against the dollar, with EUR/USD adding 0.31% to 1.3622.
Official data earlier showed that retail sales in the euro zone rose 0.7% in August, beating expectations for a 0.2% gain, after an upwardly revised 0.5% increase the previous month.
In addition, Markit research group said its final reading for the euro zone services PMI rose to 52.2 in September, from a reading of 52.1 in August. Analysts had expected the index to remain unchanged last month.
Germany's services PMI declined to 53.7 last month, from a reading of 54.4 in August, compared to expectations for the index to remain unchanged.
The dollar rose against the pound but remained close to nine-month lows, with GBP/USD down 0.38% to 1.6163.
Markit said the U.K. services PMI ticked down to 60.3 in September, from a reading of 60.5 the previous month, compared to expectations for a decline to 60.0.
A separate report showed that house price inflation in the U.K. rose 0.3% last month, confounding expectations for a 0.5% increase, after a downwardly revised 0.3% uptick in August.
The dollar was lower against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF slipping 0.28% to 0.9002.
Elsewhere, the greenback was mixed against its Australian, New Zealand and Canadian counterparts, with AUD/USD down 0.01% to 0.9386, NZD/USD shedding 0.47% to trade at 0.8291 and USD/CAD edging 0.20% lower to 1.0316.
The export-related currencies found some support after a government report showed that China's non-manufacturing PMI climbed to a six-month high of 55.4 in September from 53.9 in August.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.16% to 79.86.