Investing.com - The dollar fell one-week lows against a basket of other major currencies on Tuesday after data showed that U.S. orders for long lasting manufactured goods fell unexpectedly last month.
The drop in the dollar came after the Commerce Department reported that durable goods orders fell 1.3% in September from August, compared to expectations for a 0.5% increase.
Core durable goods orders, which strip out volatile transportation items, slid 0.2% in September, missing forecasts for a 0.5% gain. It was the largest decline in eight months.
The data came as investors were looking ahead to the conclusion of the Federal Reserve’s two day policy meeting on Wednesday, amid concerns that slowing growth in Europe and China could prompt the U.S. central bank to stick to its cautious outlook on monetary policy.
The Fed was likely to announce the conclusion of its asset purchasing stimulus program, known as quantitative easing, but was also expected to reassure markets that interest rates will remain on hold for some time to come.
The dollar gave up gains against the yen, with USD/JPY at 107.382, off highs of 108.18.
Elsewhere, the dollar turned lower against the pound and the Swiss franc, with GBP/USD up 0.29% to 1.6167 and USD/CHF losing 0.37% to trade at 0.9458.
The Australian dollar rose to almost three-week highs, with AUD/USD climbing 0.68% to 0.8861. Meanwhile, NZD/USD added 0.44% to hit 0.7928 and USD/CAD was down 0.28% to 1.1213.
The US dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was down 0.25% to a one-week low of 85.46.