Investing.com - The dollar pushed broadly lower against a basket of other major currencies on Wednesday, after data showed that U.S. durable goods orders fell unexpectedly in February.
In a report, the U.S. Commerce Department said that total durable goods orders, which include transportation items, declined 1.4% last month, compared to expectations for a gain of 0.4%. Orders for durable goods in January were revised down to a 2.0% gain from a previously reported increase of 2.8%.
Core durable goods orders, excluding volatile transportation items, inched down 0.4% in February, disappointing forecasts for a 0.3% gain. Core durable goods orders were flat in January, whose figure was revised from previously reported gain of 0.3%.
The report came a day after data showing an uptick in underlying U.S. inflation fuelled speculation that the Federal Reserve would still have leeway to tighten monetary policy even with inflation running below target.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.58% to 96.87.
EUR/USD climbed 0.60% to 1.0992, off lows of 1.0901 hit earlier in the session.
The euro strengthened after the Ifo Institute said its business climate index rose to 107.9 this month, up from 106.8 in February. Economists expected a reading of 107.3.
The survey showed German firms were more upbeat about the current situation than they were last month, with the current conditions index rising to 111.3 from 112 in February, and were also more optimistic about their prospects for the next six months.
The pound pushed higher, with GBP/USD up 0.53% to 1.4927.
The British Banker's Association earlier reported that the number of new U.K. mortgages approved increased to a five-month high of 37,300 last month from January’s total of 36,400. Analysts had expected the number of new mortgages approved to rise to 36,900 in February.
Elsewhere, the dollar was lower against the yen, with USD/JPY shedding 0.33% to 119.35 and was steady against the Swiss franc, USD/CHF at 0.9579.
The Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars were broadly stronger, with AUD/USD rising 0.20% to 0.7895 and NZD/USD gaining 0.36% to 0.7681, while USD/CAD edged down 0.11% to trade at 1.2481.