Forex - EUR/USD gains on disappointing U.S. jobless claims

The euro moved higher against the dollar on Thursday after data revealed more Americans filed for unemployment assistance last week.

In U.S. trading on Thursday, EUR/USD was up 0.22% at 1.3229, up from a session low of 1.3166 and off from a high of 1.3240.

The pair was likely to find support at 1.3166, the earlier low, and resistance at 1.3256, Wednesday's high.

The Labor Department said earlier that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits last week increased by 7,000 to 343,000 compared with expectations for a gain of 4,000 to 340,000.

The numbers weakened the dollar by keeping expectations alive the Federal Reserve will continue stimulating the economy, especially by keeping its monthly USD85 billion bond-buying program in place.

Monetary stimulus programs weaken the dollar by keeping borrowing costs low across the economy.

In a separate report, the Commerce Department said orders for durable goods rose by 4.2% in June, outpacing expectations for an increase of 1.3%. 

Durable goods for May were revised to a 5.2% gain from a previously reported 3.7% increase.

Core durable goods orders, which exclude volatile transportation items, were flat in June, missing expectations for a 0.5% increase, which kept the greenback lower.

Meanwhile in Europe, data released earlier showed that the Ifo index of German business climate ticked up to 106.2 in July from 105.9 in June, better than expectations for a reading of 106.1, which bolstered the euro.

The euro, meanwhile, was up against the pound and down against the yen, with EUR/GBP trading up 0.08% at 0.8624 and EUR/JPY trading down 0.46% at 131.75.

On Friday in the euro zone, Germany is to publish official data on retail sales and import prices.

The U.S. is to round up the week with revised data on consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan.