EUR/USD
The euro traded near 11-month lows against the dollar on Wednesday as investors remained camped out in greenback positions ahead of the release of the minutes from the Federal Reserve's most recent policy meeting. Today, the euro zone is to publish preliminary data on private sector activity, while Germany and France are to also to publish data on private sector growth.
GBP/USD
The pound strengthened as the Bank of England said two policy makers wanted an interest rate increase this month, marking the first split on rates in more than three years and the first under Governor Mark Carney. The minutes revived expectations that the BoE could hike rates in the coming months as the economic recovery in the U.K. continues gain momentum.
USD/JPY
The U.S. dollar rose to four and a half month highs against the yen on Wednesday, as Tuesday's strong U.S. data still broadly supported the greenback , while a disappointing trade report from Japan weighed on demand for the yen. In Japan, official data showed that the trade deficit narrowed to ¥1.02 trillion last month, from ¥1.07 trillion in June, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated deficit of ¥1.08 trillion. Analysts had expected the trade deficit to narrow to ¥0.77 trillion in July.
USD/CAD
The U.S. dollar trimmed back gains against the Canadian dollar on Wednesday after official data showed that Canadian wholesale sales were higher for a consecutive third month in June. The Canadian dollar firmed up after Statistics Canada reported that wholesale sales rose 0.6% to C$53.0 billion in June. Wholesale sales for May were revised up to 2.3% from a previously reported gain of 2.2%.Economists had forecast an increase of 1.3%.
