U.S. Dollar Higher After Upbeat Economic Data

(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar was higher against its major counterparts in the New York session on Thursday, as strong retail sales and soft jobless claims data alleviated concerns about a recession and raised the likelihood of a 25 basis point rate cut by the Federal Reserve in September.

Data from the Commerce Department showed that retail sales jumped by 1.0 percent in July after edging down by a revised 0.2 percent in June.

Economists had expected retail sales to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the unchanged reading originally reported for the previous month.

Excluding a surge in sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales rose by 0.4 percent in July after climbing by 0.8 percent in June. Ex-auto sales were expected to inch up by 0.1 percent.

Data from the Labor Department showed that initial jobless claims fell to 227,000, a decrease of 7,000 from the previous week's revised level of 234,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 235,000 from the 233,000 originally reported for the previous week.

The greenback climbed to a 2-day high of 1.0949 against the euro, 2-week high of 0.8748 against the franc and near a 2-week high of 149.32 against the yen, off its early lows of 1.1015, 0.8647 and 147.05, respectively. The currency is likely to locate resistance around 1.06 against the euro, 0.94 against the franc and 152.00 against the yen.

The greenback advanced to a 1-week high of 0.6560 against the aussie and an 8-day high of 0.5974 against the kiwi, from its early lows of 0.6633 and 0.6014, respectively. The currency is seen finding resistance around 0.63 against the aussie and 0.58 against the kiwi.

The greenback touched a 2-day high of 1.2798 against the pound, up from an early 2-day low of 1.2869. Next key resistance for the currency is seen around the 1.24 level.

Meanwhile, the greenback retreated from an early 2-day high of 1.3738 against the loonie and was trading at 1.3702. The currency is poised to challenge support around the 1.34 level.