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Thursday 29 August 2013

Dollar rallies after upbeat U.S. data


The dollar rallied to session highs against the other major currencies on Thursday after reports showed that U.S. second quarter growth was revised higher and jobless claims fell, indicating that the recovery is on track.

During European afternoon trade, the dollar hit fresh session highs against the yen, with USD/JPY advancing 0.82% to 98.44.

The Commerce Department said gross domestic product expanded at an annual rate of 2.5% in the three months to June, above expectations for growth of 2.2% and up from a preliminary estimate of 1.7%.

In a separate report, the Department of Labor said the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance fell to the lowest level since October 2007 last week.

The number of people filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending August 23 fell by 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 331,000, compared to forecasts for a decline of 5,000.

The upbeat data reinforced the view that the Federal Reserve could start phasing out stimulus measures as soon as next month.

The dollar rose to session highs against the euro, with EUR/USDdropping 0.73% to 1.3241.

The single currency was pressured lower by speculation that Greece will require a third bailout package in 2014.

Meanwhile, markets participants remained cautious amid concerns over prospects for a U.S.-led military strike against Syria’s government, following the alleged use of chemical weapons.

The dollar was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD sliding 0.22% to 1.5493.

Sterling continued to remain supported by expectations that the Bank of England may raise interest rates much earlier than it has indicated, following recent improved U.K. economic data.

The dollar extended gains against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHFjumping 0.87% to 0.9301.

Elsewhere, the greenback was stronger against its Australian, New Zealand and Canadian counterparts, with AUD/USD sliding 0.13% to 0.8929, NZD/USD down 0.42% to 0.7765 and USD/CAD rising 0.21% to 1.0509.

The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.68% to 81.99.

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