Investing.com - The dollar pushed higher against a basket of major currencies on Tuesday as the euro re-approached recent multi-month lows ahead of reports on economic growth and inflation later in the week.
EUR/USD was down 0.17% to 1.3360, not far from the nine month lows of 1.3332 struck last Wednesday.
Investors were looking ahead to Thursday’s preliminary data on second quarter growth in the euro zone, as well as in Germany and France, amid expectations for a weak reading.
The euro zone was also to publish revised data on consumer prices for July on Thursday, with the annual rate of inflation expected to remain unchanged at 0.4%, well below the ECB’s 2% target.
The ECB cut rates to record lows in June in a bid to stave off growing deflationary pressure in the region and concerns over the diverging monetary policy stance between it and its major peers have continued to pressure the single currency lower.
Meanwhile, investors were continuing to monitor geopolitical risk stemming from Ukraine and the Middle East.
Germany was to release its closely watched ZEW index of economic sentiment later Tuesday, as concerns over the impact of sanctions on Russia continued to weigh on the outlook for the bloc’s largest economy. Germany is Russia’s largest trading partner in Europe.
The dollar also gained ground against the yen, with USD/JPY up 0.10% to 102.29.
Sterling and the Swiss franc weakened, with GBP/USD dipping 0.08% to 1.6769, while USD/CHF added 0.17% to trade at 0.9082.
The Australian dollar was steady, with AUD/USD supported at 0.9264. Earlier Tuesday data showed that Australian business confidence improved in July, and another report showed that house prices rose more strongly than expected in the second quarter.
Meanwhile, NZD/USD slid 0.43% to 0.8421 and USD/CAD advanced 0.17% to 1.0940.
The US Dollar Index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, rose 0.18% to 81.66, not far from last week’s 11-month peaks of 81.78.