Investing.com - The dollar held steady against other major currencies on Thursday, as markets were still digesting the Federal Reserve's latest policy statement, while looking ahead to a string of U.S. economic reports due later in the day.
In a widely expected move, the Fed raised interest rates by 0.25 basis points to 1.50% at the conclusion of its policy meeting on Wednesday.
The central bank did not change its projections for 2018, which include three more interest rate hikes in both 2018 and 2019, disappointing expectations for four rate hikes next year.
In other news, Congressional Republicans reached a deal on final tax legislation on Wednesday, clearing the way for final votes next week.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was little changed at 93.4 by 05:15 a.m. ET (09:15 GMT), just off a one-week low of 93.33 hit overnight.
The euro was steady, with EUR/USD at 1.1821, while GBP/USD rose 0.22% to 1.3447.
Earlier Thursday, official data showed that UK retail sales rose more than expected in November.
Meanwhile, the euro zone registered its fastest growth in business activity in almost seven years this month.
Elsewhere, the yen and the Swiss franc were lower, with USD/JPY up 0.20% at 112.76 and with USD/CHF gaining 0.30% to 0.9884.
The Swiss National Bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at record-low -0.75%, in line with expectations.
The Australian dollar was stronger, with AUD/USD up 0.34% at 0.7662, while NZD/USD dropped 0.36% to 0.6999.
In Australia, data earlier showed that the number of employed people increased by 61,600 in November, beating expectations for a 19,200 rise. The unemployment rate remained unchaned at 5.4%, in line with expectations.
Meanwhile, USD/CAD added 0.17% to trade at 1.2838.