The dollar is turning in a mixed performance after its major rivals Thursday afternoon, but is little changed overall. The U.S. currency has been strengthening since the start of the trading week, but is hitting a bit of a pause ahead of the Easter holiday. The buck is nearly flat against the Euro, falling against the British pound and slightly higher against the Japanese Yen.
First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits saw a modest increase in the week ended March 19th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday. The report said initial jobless claims edged up to 265,000, an increase of 6,000 from the previous week’s downwardly revised level of 259,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 268,000 from the 265,000 originally reported for the previous week.
After reporting a significant rebound in new orders for U.S. manufactured goods in the previous month, the Commerce Department released a report on Thursday showing that durable goods orders pulled back in the month of February.
The Commerce Department said durable goods orders fell by 2.8 percent in February after surging up by a revised 4.2 percent in January. Economists had expected durable goods orders to drop by 3.0 percent compared to the 4.7 percent jump that had been reported for the previous month.
Euro area economic recovery is set to continue at a moderate pace as global concerns such as the emerging market slowdown and a stronger euro weaken prospects for stronger expansion, the European Central Bank said in its latest economic bulletin released Thursday.
“The economic recovery in the euro area is continuing, albeit with signs of a moderation in growth at the beginning of the year due to a weaker external environment,” the bank said.
The central bank expects domestic demand to be further supported by its monetary policy measures and their favorable impact on financial conditions, the slightly expansionary fiscal stance, and the favorable impact on employment of past structural reforms.
Further, the low price of oil should provide additional support for households’ real disposable income and corporate profitability, and thus for private consumption and investment, the ECB said.
The dollar rose to a 1-week high of $1.1142 against the Euro Thursday morning, but has since pulled back to around $1.1180.
German consumer confidence is set to fall in April as global risks dampen economic outlook and consumers turn less optimistic about income expectations. The forward-looking consumer sentiment index dropped to 9.4 from 9.5 points in March, survey data from market research group GfK showed Thursday. It was forecast to remain unchanged at 9.5.
Germany’s import prices decreased at the fastest rate in more than six years during February, as lower energy prices continued to dampen inflationary pressures, preliminary data from Destatis showed Thursday. The import price index dropped 5.7 percent year-on-year following 3.8 percent decline in January. Economists were looking for a 5.1 percent fall.
New orders received by the German construction sector increased in January and the order value was the highest since April 2002, Destatis said Thursday. Construction orders grew 1 percent from the previous month. Year-on-year, the increase was 12.6 percent on an adjusted basis.
France’s manufacturing confidence unexpectedly weakened for the first time in four months in March, as the assessment on order book levels and businesses’ expectations on their production deteriorated, survey results from INSEE showed Thursday. The confidence index for the manufacturing industry dropped to 101 from 103 in both January and February. Economists had expected the index to hold steady at 103.
The buck climbed to a 1-week high of $1.4058 against the pound sterling Thursday, but has since dropped to around $1.4180.
British retail sales declined at a slower than expected pace in February, data from the Office for National Statistics revealed Thursday. Retail sales volume dropped 0.4 percent month-on-month reversing January’s 2.3 percent growth. This was slower than an expected 0.7 percent decrease.
U.K. mortgage approvals declined in February, defying expectations for a modest increase, figures from the British Bankers’ Association showed Thursday. The number of loans approved for house purchase fell to 45,892 from 46,916 in January, which was highest in nearly two years. Economists had forecast 47,900 approvals for February.
The greenback reached a 1-week high of Y113.006 against the Japanese Yen Thursday, but has since eased back to around Y112.700.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com