Investing.com – The U.S. dollar was down against the other major currencies on Tuesday, after the Bank of Japan’s decision to begin fresh monetary easing fanned fears that the Federal Reserve would follow suit.
During European afternoon trade, the greenback was down against the euro, with EUR/USD jumping 1.09% to hit 1.3835.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that euro zone retail sales fell unexpectedly in August while a separate report showed that the final euro-zone PMI for service industries was revised up to 54.1 from 53.8.
The greenback was also down against the pound, with GBP/USD gaining 0.52% to hit 1.5912, after industry data showed that the U.K.’s services PMI rose unexpectedly in September.
Elsewhere, the dollar was down against the Swiss franc and the yen, with USD/CHF falling 0.54% to hit 0.9665 and USD/JPY shedding 0.22% to hit 83.17.
Earlier Tuesday, the Bank of Japan announced that it lowered its benchmark interest rate to a range between 0.0% to 0.1%, its lowest level since 2006. The bank’s decision to embark on a monetary easing program weakened confidence in currencies, resulting in the dollar coming under broad selling pressure.
Meanwhile, the greenback was down against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD dropping 0.65% to hit 1.0168, AUD/USD gaining 0.15% to hit 0.9699 and NZD/USD advancing 0.83% to hit 0.7482.
Earlier in the day, the Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate unchanged for the fifth consecutive month in October, contrary to expectations of an increase.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.86% to hit a 10-month low.
Earlier in the day, the U.S. Institute of Supply Management said its non-manufacturing purchasing manager's index rose to 53.2 in September, after falling to 51.5 in August. Analysts had expected the index to advance to 51.8 in September.
During European afternoon trade, the greenback was down against the euro, with EUR/USD jumping 1.09% to hit 1.3835.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that euro zone retail sales fell unexpectedly in August while a separate report showed that the final euro-zone PMI for service industries was revised up to 54.1 from 53.8.
The greenback was also down against the pound, with GBP/USD gaining 0.52% to hit 1.5912, after industry data showed that the U.K.’s services PMI rose unexpectedly in September.
Elsewhere, the dollar was down against the Swiss franc and the yen, with USD/CHF falling 0.54% to hit 0.9665 and USD/JPY shedding 0.22% to hit 83.17.
Earlier Tuesday, the Bank of Japan announced that it lowered its benchmark interest rate to a range between 0.0% to 0.1%, its lowest level since 2006. The bank’s decision to embark on a monetary easing program weakened confidence in currencies, resulting in the dollar coming under broad selling pressure.
Meanwhile, the greenback was down against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD dropping 0.65% to hit 1.0168, AUD/USD gaining 0.15% to hit 0.9699 and NZD/USD advancing 0.83% to hit 0.7482.
Earlier in the day, the Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate unchanged for the fifth consecutive month in October, contrary to expectations of an increase.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.86% to hit a 10-month low.
Earlier in the day, the U.S. Institute of Supply Management said its non-manufacturing purchasing manager's index rose to 53.2 in September, after falling to 51.5 in August. Analysts had expected the index to advance to 51.8 in September.