Investing.com - The dollar held steady against the euro and the yen on Wednesday as investors looked ahead to the conclusion of the Federal Reserve’s two day policy meeting later in the day.
EUR/USD edged up 0.08% to 1.2744, holding below Tuesday’s one week highs of 1.2764.
The Fed was widely expected to announce the conclusion of its asset purchasing stimulus program, known as quantitative easing after its monthly meeting.
However, the U.S. central bank was also expected to reassure markets that interest rates will remain on hold for some time to come amid concerns that slowing growth in Europe and China could act as a drag on the U.S. economy.
The dollar weakened against the other major currencies on Tuesday after a report showed that U.S. orders for long lasting manufactured goods were unexpectedly lower for the second successive month in September.
The Commerce Department said U.S. durable goods orders fell 1.3% from a month earlier, missing expectations for a 0.5% increase.
The greenback subsequently pared back losses after another report showed that U.S. consumer confidence jumped to the highest level in seven years this month.
The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index rose to 94.5 from a revised 89 in September, beating forecasts.
USD/JPY dipped 0.10% to 108.04, holding above Tuesday’s lows of 107.68.
The US dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, edged down to 85.40, not far from Tuesday’s one week lows of 85.29.