Investing.com – The U.S. dollar was higher against almost all of its major counterparts on Thursday, as investors sought refuge in safe haven assets after the Federal Reserve warned about “downside risks” to U.S. growth and unveiled fresh measures to shore up the economy.
During European morning trade, the greenback was up against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.32% to hit 1.3530.
At the conclusion of its policy setting meeting on Wednesday the Fed unveiled a plan to trade short-term bonds for long-term ones, in an attempt to boost the economy by pushing down long-term interest rates, a move dubbed “Operation Twist.”
But risk appetite was hit after the central bank warned that the U.S. faces a grim economic outlook.
“There are significant downside risks to the economic outlook, including strains in global financial markets,” the Fed said.
Meanwhile, in the euro zone data released earlier showed that German manufacturing output fell to a 24-month low in September, while manufacturing activity in the euro zone slumped to the lowest since August 2009.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD down 0.29% to hit 1.5452.
Elsewhere, the greenback was down against the yen but was higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY slipping 0.10% to hit 76.39 and USD/CHF rallying 0.95% to hit 0.9086.
The greenback was also higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD surging 1.11% to hit 1.0191, AUD/USD tumbling 1.10% to hit 0.9931 and NZD/USD plunging 1.49% to hit 0.7893.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that New Zealand’s gross domestic product grew by 0.1% in the second quarter, after expanding by an upwardly revised 0.9% in the three months to March. Analysts had expected GDP to increase by 0.5% on the second quarter.
Another report, showing that Chinese factory output fell for a third consecutive month in September added to fears over a slowdown in global growth.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.40% to hit 78.73.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish its weekly report on initial jobless claims.
During European morning trade, the greenback was up against the euro, with EUR/USD shedding 0.32% to hit 1.3530.
At the conclusion of its policy setting meeting on Wednesday the Fed unveiled a plan to trade short-term bonds for long-term ones, in an attempt to boost the economy by pushing down long-term interest rates, a move dubbed “Operation Twist.”
But risk appetite was hit after the central bank warned that the U.S. faces a grim economic outlook.
“There are significant downside risks to the economic outlook, including strains in global financial markets,” the Fed said.
Meanwhile, in the euro zone data released earlier showed that German manufacturing output fell to a 24-month low in September, while manufacturing activity in the euro zone slumped to the lowest since August 2009.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD down 0.29% to hit 1.5452.
Elsewhere, the greenback was down against the yen but was higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY slipping 0.10% to hit 76.39 and USD/CHF rallying 0.95% to hit 0.9086.
The greenback was also higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD surging 1.11% to hit 1.0191, AUD/USD tumbling 1.10% to hit 0.9931 and NZD/USD plunging 1.49% to hit 0.7893.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that New Zealand’s gross domestic product grew by 0.1% in the second quarter, after expanding by an upwardly revised 0.9% in the three months to March. Analysts had expected GDP to increase by 0.5% on the second quarter.
Another report, showing that Chinese factory output fell for a third consecutive month in September added to fears over a slowdown in global growth.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.40% to hit 78.73.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish its weekly report on initial jobless claims.