U.S. Dollar Down After Weak ISM Manufacturing PMI, Job Openings Data

(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar fell against its major counterparts in the New York session on Wednesday, as the nation's manufacturing activity contracted in April and job openings missed estimates in March.

Survey data from the Institute for Supply Management showed that the manufacturing PMI slipped to 49.2 in April from 50.3 in March, with a reading below 50 indicating contraction. Economists had expected the index to edge down to 50.0.

The slight pullback by the index came after it indicated a modest expansion in March following sixteen consecutive months of contraction.

Data from the Labor Department showed that job openings decreased to 8.488 million in March from an upwardly revised 8.813 million in February.

Economists had expected job openings to dip to 8.690 million from the 8.756 million originally reported for the previous month.

Investors await the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement, due shortly.

The central bank is widely expected to leave interest rate unchanged. The accompanying statement and Fed Chair Jerome Powell's post meeting press conference could offer clues about future interest rate moves.

The greenback fell to 1.2499 against the pound, 157.38 against the yen and 1.0691 against the euro, from an early 5-day high of 1.2466, 2-day high of 157.98 and an 8-day high of 1.0649, respectively. The greenback is seen finding support around 1.27 against the pound, 147.00 against the yen and 1.08 against the euro.

The greenback dropped to 1.3747 against the loonie, 0.6497 against the aussie and 0.5908 against the kiwi, from an early high of 1.3783, 8-day high of 0.6465 and nearly a 2-week high of 0.5874, respectively. The currency may locate support around 1.34 against the loonie, 0.68 against the aussie and 0.62 against the kiwi.

The greenback retreated to 0.9186 against the franc, reversing from an early nearly 7-month high of 0.9224. If the currency falls further, it is likely to test support around the 0.90 region.