Dollar mixed vs. rivals after U.S. data, Philly Fed ahead

The U.S. dollar was mixed against the other major currencies on Thursday, after data showed that U.S. jobless claims rose less than expected last week, while news that the Federal Reserve left its stimulus program unchanged continued to weigh on the greenback. 

During late European afternoon trade, the dollar was lower against the euro, with EUR/USD adding 0.17% to 1.3544. 

The Department of Labor said the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. in the week ending September 13 rose by 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 309,000 from an upwardly revised 294,000 the previous week. 

Analysts had expected the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance to rise by 36,000 to 330,000 last week. 

A separate report showed that the U.S. current account deficit narrowed to USD98.9 billion in the second quarter, from an downwardly revised deficit of USD104.9 billion in the three months to March. Analysts had expected the current account deficit to improve to a USD97 billion. 

The data came a day after the Fed held back from reducing the USD85 billion pace of its monthly asset purchases. 

Bernanke refused to commit to reducing bond purchases this year, saying the stimulus program was "not on a preset course." 

The greenback was higher against the pound, with GBP/USD retreating 0.42% to 1.6076. 

Earlier Thursday, official data showed that U.K. retail sales fell 0.9% in August, confounding expectations for a 0.4% rise, after a 1.1% increase the previous month. 

In addition, the Confederation of British Industry said its index of industrial order expectations rose to 9 in September, from a reading of zero in August, beating expectations for an increase to 2. 

Elsewhere, the greenback jumped higher against the yen, with USD/JPYrallying 1.34% to trade at 99.24, but edged lower against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF easing 0.08% to 0.9112. 

The Swiss National Bank on Thursday re-affirmed its cap on the franc and vowed to defend it with unlimited currency interventions to protect the economy. 

The comments came after the SNB held its benchmark interest rate near zero, in a widely expected move. 

The greenback was mixed against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD dipping 0.06% to 1.0214,AUD/USD sliding 0.31% to 0.9490 and NZD/USD rising 0.19% to 0.8386. 

Official data earlier showed that New Zealand's gross domestic product expanded by 0.2% in the second quarter, in line with expectations, after an upwardly revised 0.4% expansion in the three months to March. 

In Canada, official data showed that wholesale sales rose 1.5% in July, more than the expected 1% increase, after a downwardly revised 3.1% decline the previous month. 

The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.16% to 80.35. 

Later in the day, the U.S. was to release the Philly Fed manufacturing index as well as data on existing home sales.