Investing.com - The dollar remained broadly lower against other major currencies on Thursday, despite the release of mostly positive U.S. data and amid sustained expectations for a near-term U.S. rate hike.
EUR/USD was up 0.44% at 1.0647, off the previous session’s one-month trough of 1.0520.
The U.S. Department of Labor said initial jobless claims increased by 5,000 to 239,000 in the week ending February 11 from the previous week’s total of 234,000. Analysts expected jobless claims to rise by 11,000 to 245,000 last week.
In addition, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve said its business conditions index jumped to 43.3 this month from 23.6 in January, which was the highest level since November 2014. Economists had expected a reading of 18.0 this month.
Data also showed that building permits issued jumped by 4.6% to 1.285 million units last month from 1.210 million in December.
However, U.S. housing starts fell by 2.6% to 1.246 million units last month from December’s total of 1.279 million units.
The greenback had strengthened broadly after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen told the U.S. Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday that the central bank will likely need to raise interest rates at one of its upcoming meetings.
Ms. Yellen said that waiting too long to raise interest rates would be "unwise," given the rise in inflation and economic growth.
Elsewhere, GBP/USD rose 0.30% to 1.2499.
USD/JPY slid 0.44% to 113.65, after hitting a two-week high of 114.97 on Wednesday, while USD/CHF dropped 0.53% to trade at 1.0002.
The Australian dollar was steady, with AUD/USD at 0.7705, off a three-month high of 0.7732 hit overnight, while NZD/USD slipped 0.14% to 0.7214.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics earlier reported that the number of employed people increased by 13,500 in January, beating expectations for a 10,000 rise. The number of employed people climbed by 16,300 in December, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 13,500 gain.
The report also showed that Australia’s unemployment rate ticked down to 5.7% last month from 5.8% in December. Analysts had expected an unchanged reading in January.
Meanwhile, USD/CAD declined 0.37% to trade at 1.3032.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.43% at 100.65, off the previous session’s five-week high of 101.75.