Investing.com - The euro rose to session highs against the dollar on Monday after data showing that manufacturing activity in the U.S. expanded at the slowest rate in 11 months in January.
The dollar slid after the Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing purchasing managers’ index fell to 53.5 last month from 55.5 in December, worse than forecasts for a decline to 54.5.
The employment component of the index registered 54.1, down from 56.0 in December.
In a separate report, research group Markit said its final U.S. manufacturing PMI came in at 53.9 in January, unchanged from December and the slowest rate of growth in a year.
EUR/USD hit highs of 1.1362 up from around 1.1337 ahead of the data.
The report came on the heels of data showing that U.S. consumer spending fell at the fastest rate since September 2009 in December as households saved on cheaper gasoline prices.
The Commerce Department said consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of economic activity, fell 0.3% after increasing 0.5% in the previous month.
The report said personal income rose 0.3% in December, matching November’s increase.
The single currency remained supported by hopes that Greece’s new government would be able to reach a compromise with its international creditors on the terms of its bailout.
Data on Monday showed that the final euro zone manufacturing PMI rose to 51.0 in January from 50.6 in December. Activity France, Italy and Greece declined, while activity in Germany slowed from the previous month, underlining concerns over the weak recovery.
The report also showed that producers cut prices at the fastest rate in over 18 months, highlighting concerns over the threat of deflation in the region.
In other trade, the dollar was lower against the yen, with USD/JPY down 0.23% to 117.22.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.37% to 94.70.