Forex - Dollar mostly higher ahead of Fed minutes

The U.S. dollar traded higher against most of its major rivals during Wednesday’s Asian session as traders await more data points out of China and the release minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most recent meeting. 

In Asian trading Wednesday, EUR/USD nudged lower by 0.04% to 1.2777 after the International Monetary Fund cut its 2013 global growth forecast to 3.1% from a 3.3% prediction made in April and cut its 2014 growth forecast to 3.8% from 4.0%, which sent investors snapping up safe-haven positions in the dollar. 

GBP/USD fell 0.08% to 1.4855 and is hovering near 3-year lows after the Office for National Statistics said earlier that U.K. manufacturing production contracted 0.8% in May, defying expectations for a 0.3% increase. 

Manufacturing production fell at an annual rate of 2.9% in May, far outpacing expectations for a 1.6% decline. The ONS also said that industrial production came in flat in May, disappointing expectations for a 0.2% increase, and was 2.3% lower on a year-over-year basis.

Separate data showed that the U.K. trade deficit widened to GBP8.49 billion in May from a deficit of GBP8.43 billion in April. Economists had forecast a deficit of GBP8.47 billion. 

USD/JPY inched down 0.02% to 101.14 after the Bank of Japan said that Japan’s corporate goods price index rose 1.2% last month following a 0.6% increase in May. Analysts expected the 1.2% increase. 

In a separate report, METI said that Japanese tertiary industry activity index rose 1.2% in June after a flat reading in May. Analysts had expected Japanese tertiary industry activity index to rise 0.9% last month. 

USD/CHF rose 0.09% to 0.9740 while USD/CAD inched up 0.02% to 1.0532 even after the American Petroleum Institute said U.S. oil inventories fell by 9 million barrels last week, well above the decline of 3.8 million barrels analysts expected. 

AUD/USD dropped 0.13% to 0.9167 while NZD/USD shed 0.23% to 0.7840. The U.S. Dollar Index inched up 0.03% to 84.87.