Investing.com - The U.S. dollar was higher against its major counterparts on Tuesday, as investors eyed a key meeting of euro zone finance ministers on Wednesday, while the downgrade of six of the region’s nations continued to weigh.
During U.S. morning trade, the dollar was higher against the euro, with EUR/USD falling 0.33% to hit 1.3143.
The euro came under pressure after ratings agency Moody's downgraded the credit ratings on six European countries, including Spain and Italy late Monday. France and Austria kept their top ratings but had their outlooks dropped to "negative" from "stable."
Meanwhile, markets were eyeing a meeting of euro zone finance ministers on Wednesday, as officials were pouring over Greece’s budget to decide whether the country has met conditions to receive a second bailout package.
Sentiment found brief support earlier after a report showed that German economic sentiment rose significantly more-than-expected in February, turning positive for the first time since May 2011, while economic sentiment in the euro zone rose to minus 8.1 from minus 32.5 in January.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD shedding 0.64% to hit 1.5665.
Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said the bank's Monetary Policy Committee expects inflation to fall back to "around" its 2% target by the end of 2012, although the pace and extent of the fall in inflation remain highly uncertain.
The comments came after official data showed earlier that consumer price inflation in the U.K. rose 3.6% in January, in line with expectations, while retail prices rose less-than-expected in January, advancing 3.9% after a 4.8% increase the previous month.
The greenback was higher against yen and the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY jumping 1.10% to hit 78.43 and USD/CHF advancing 0.27% to hit 0.9190.
Earlier in the day, the Bank of Japan unexpectedly eased policy by adding JPY10 trillion to its asset-purchase program. The bank also set a 1% inflation target “for the time being” and stated that positive consumer-price growth would be defined as below 2% year-on-year.
Elsewhere, the greenback was higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD edging up 0.09% to hit 1.0007, AUD/USD falling 0.51% to hit 1.0676 and NZD/USD retreating 0.45% to hit 0.8301.
Industry data showed earlier that an index of business confidence for Australia rose to 4 in January from 3 the previous month.
In New Zealand, a report showed that house prices fell 1.4% in January after a 0.1% drop the previous month.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, rose 0.49% to hit 79.47.
Also Tuesday, the U.S. Census Bureau said that retail sales rose less-than-expected by 0.4% in January, falling short of expectations for a 0.8% increase. December’s figure was revised down to a flat reading from a previously reported 0.1% increase.
The report also showed that core retail sales, which exclude automobile sales, rose by 0.7% last month, above expectations for a 0.6% gain.
During U.S. morning trade, the dollar was higher against the euro, with EUR/USD falling 0.33% to hit 1.3143.
The euro came under pressure after ratings agency Moody's downgraded the credit ratings on six European countries, including Spain and Italy late Monday. France and Austria kept their top ratings but had their outlooks dropped to "negative" from "stable."
Meanwhile, markets were eyeing a meeting of euro zone finance ministers on Wednesday, as officials were pouring over Greece’s budget to decide whether the country has met conditions to receive a second bailout package.
Sentiment found brief support earlier after a report showed that German economic sentiment rose significantly more-than-expected in February, turning positive for the first time since May 2011, while economic sentiment in the euro zone rose to minus 8.1 from minus 32.5 in January.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD shedding 0.64% to hit 1.5665.
Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said the bank's Monetary Policy Committee expects inflation to fall back to "around" its 2% target by the end of 2012, although the pace and extent of the fall in inflation remain highly uncertain.
The comments came after official data showed earlier that consumer price inflation in the U.K. rose 3.6% in January, in line with expectations, while retail prices rose less-than-expected in January, advancing 3.9% after a 4.8% increase the previous month.
The greenback was higher against yen and the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY jumping 1.10% to hit 78.43 and USD/CHF advancing 0.27% to hit 0.9190.
Earlier in the day, the Bank of Japan unexpectedly eased policy by adding JPY10 trillion to its asset-purchase program. The bank also set a 1% inflation target “for the time being” and stated that positive consumer-price growth would be defined as below 2% year-on-year.
Elsewhere, the greenback was higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD edging up 0.09% to hit 1.0007, AUD/USD falling 0.51% to hit 1.0676 and NZD/USD retreating 0.45% to hit 0.8301.
Industry data showed earlier that an index of business confidence for Australia rose to 4 in January from 3 the previous month.
In New Zealand, a report showed that house prices fell 1.4% in January after a 0.1% drop the previous month.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, rose 0.49% to hit 79.47.
Also Tuesday, the U.S. Census Bureau said that retail sales rose less-than-expected by 0.4% in January, falling short of expectations for a 0.8% increase. December’s figure was revised down to a flat reading from a previously reported 0.1% increase.
The report also showed that core retail sales, which exclude automobile sales, rose by 0.7% last month, above expectations for a 0.6% gain.