On Thursday the dollar remained lower against the other major currencies, as a disappointing U.S.
trade balance report weighed.
The U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending January 31 increased by 11,000 to 278,000 from the previous week’s revised total of 267,000. Economists had expected initial jobless claims to rise by 23,000 to 290,000 last week.
Another report showed that the U.S. trade deficit widened to $46.56 billion in December from $39.75 billion in November, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated deficit of $39.00 billion. Analysts had expected the trade deficit to narrow to $38.00 billion in December.
EUR/USD climbed 0.71% to 1.1431, off session lows of 1.1304.
The European Central Bank
said it would no longer accept Greek bonds as collateral for lending, pushing Greece’s central bank to provide additional
liquidity for its lenders and increasing pressure on Athens. This, in turn, pressured the common currency.
Greece’s government is seeking debt relief on its current €240 billion bailout, which has fuelled fears over a clash with its creditors that could bring about its eventual exit from the euro zone.
Also today, data showed that German factory orders rose 4.2% in December, exceeding expectations for a 1.5% gain, after a 2.4% fall in November.
The British currency traded hgher against the dollar, with GBP/USD up 0.82% to 1.5307.
Earlier, industry data showed that U.K. house price inflation rose 2.0% in January, beating expectations for a 0.1% uptick. December's figure was revised to a 1.1% increase from a previously estimated 0.9% gain.
Elsewhere, USD/CHF held steady at 0.9260, while USD/JPY edged up 0.13% to 117.43.
The Aussie and Kiwi dollars remained higher, with AUD/USD advancing 0.92% to 0.7823 and NZD/USD up 0.63% to 0.7414.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics earlier reported that retail sales rose 0.2% in December, disappointing expectations for an increase of 0.4%, after a 0.1% uptick the previous month.
The loonie continued to gain ground, with USD/CAD retreating 0.83% to 1.2468.
Statistics Canada said the country's trade deficit widened to C$0.65 billion in December from C$0.34 billion in November, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated deficit of C$0.64 billion. Analysts had expected the trade deficit to widen to C$1.00 billion in December.
