Investing.com – The broadly higher U.S. dollar was up against all of its major counterparts on Thursday, as mounting concerns over global economic growth prospects boosted demand for safe haven assets such as the greenback and gold.
During European afternoon trade, the greenback was up against the euro, with EUR/USD slumping 0.4% to hit 1.4367.
European Central Bank Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny said earlier that he was more concerned about entering a phase of slow growth and low inflation than the risks posed by high inflation.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD shedding 0.25% to hit 1.6502.
The U.K. Office for National Statistics said earlier that retail sales rose by 0.2% in July, below expectations for a 0.3% gain.
Meanwhile, the greenback was higher against the yen and Swiss franc, with USD/JPY easing up 0.02% to hit 76.62 and USD/CHF gaining 0.5% to hit 0.7941.
Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said earlier that he will continue to “closely watch market moves”, while adding that an “intervention is meaningless if not a surprise”.
Meanwhile, the Swiss National Bank declined to comment on speculation it was intervening in the currency market by boosting liquidity via the currency forwards market.
Elsewhere, the greenback was higher against the risk-sensitive Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars, with AUD/USD tumbling 1.04% to hit 1.0441, NZD/USD dropping 0.79% to hit 0.8308, while USD/CAD jumped 0.63 to hit 0.9869.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.46% to hit 74.15.
Meanwhile, gold futures soared to a fresh record high of USD1,819.90 a troy ounce amid increased safe haven demand.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish a flurry of economic data, which will help traders gauge the strength of the U.S. economic recovery.
The country was to produce government reports on initial jobless claims, consumer price inflation, existing home sales, manufacturing activity in Philadelphia as well as a report on natural gas stockpiles.
During European afternoon trade, the greenback was up against the euro, with EUR/USD slumping 0.4% to hit 1.4367.
European Central Bank Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny said earlier that he was more concerned about entering a phase of slow growth and low inflation than the risks posed by high inflation.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD shedding 0.25% to hit 1.6502.
The U.K. Office for National Statistics said earlier that retail sales rose by 0.2% in July, below expectations for a 0.3% gain.
Meanwhile, the greenback was higher against the yen and Swiss franc, with USD/JPY easing up 0.02% to hit 76.62 and USD/CHF gaining 0.5% to hit 0.7941.
Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said earlier that he will continue to “closely watch market moves”, while adding that an “intervention is meaningless if not a surprise”.
Meanwhile, the Swiss National Bank declined to comment on speculation it was intervening in the currency market by boosting liquidity via the currency forwards market.
Elsewhere, the greenback was higher against the risk-sensitive Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars, with AUD/USD tumbling 1.04% to hit 1.0441, NZD/USD dropping 0.79% to hit 0.8308, while USD/CAD jumped 0.63 to hit 0.9869.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.46% to hit 74.15.
Meanwhile, gold futures soared to a fresh record high of USD1,819.90 a troy ounce amid increased safe haven demand.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish a flurry of economic data, which will help traders gauge the strength of the U.S. economic recovery.
The country was to produce government reports on initial jobless claims, consumer price inflation, existing home sales, manufacturing activity in Philadelphia as well as a report on natural gas stockpiles.