U.S. Dollar Jumps Ahead Of Key U.S. Economic Data

(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar was higher against its major counterparts in the New York session on Tuesday, as traders pared bets on aggressive Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts and awaited minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting scheduled for Wednesday.

The CPI data, due on Thursday, could provide more clues on the Fed's rate path.

The annual inflation is expected to ease to 2.3 percent from 2.5 percent.

After Friday's upbeat jobs data, traders now expect only a quarter-point cut in interest rates at the Federal Reserve's next policy announcement on November 7, with a small chance that the policy rate stays unchanged.

Data from the Commerce Department showed that the U.S. trade deficit narrowed in the month of August.

The trade deficit shrank to $70.4 billion in August from a revised $78.9 billion in July.

Economists had expected the trade deficit to decrease to $70.6 billion from the $78.8 billion originally reported for the previous month.

The greenback edged up to 0.8584 against the franc, 148.35 against the yen and 1.0960 against the euro, off its early 4-day lows of 0.8530, 147.34 and 1.0996, respectively. The currency is seen finding resistance around 0.89 against the franc, 150.00 against the yen and 1.08 against the euro.

The greenback rebounded to 1.3075 against the pound. The currency is poised to challenge resistance around the 1.29 level.

The greenback climbed to near a 2-month high of 1.3675 against the loonie. Immediate resistance for the currency is seen around the 1.38 level.

The greenback was up against the kiwi, at 0.6123. This may be compared to an early nearly 4-week high of 0.6107. The currency is likely to locate resistance around the 0.60 level.

In contrast, the greenback was trading at 0.6741 against the aussie, down from an early fresh 3-week low of 0.6769. If the greenback falls further, it is likely to test support around the 0.70 region.