Investing.com – The dollar traded above break even against a basket of global currencies on Wednesday, despite U.S. factory orders in May undershooting expectations ahead of the release of the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s June meeting.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose by 0.07% to 96.06.
The dollar eased from session highs, pressured by data showing U.S. factory orders sank 0.8% in May following a smaller decline in April.
Analysts had expected a decline of 0.5%.
The disappointing data comes ahead of the release of the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s June 13-14 meeting, at which the central bank’s policy makers authorised an interest rate increase.
Investors are expected to closely monitor the release of the minutes for any clues about whether the Federal Reserve remains committed to raise rates at least once more this year, despite a slowdown in inflation.
Sterling was one of the beneficiaries of a tick lower in the greenback, as GBP/USD pared losses to trade flat at $1.2917. The pound had come under pressure earlier in the session on the back rising concerns about UK economic growth, after services data undershot expectations.
EUR/USD fell 0.13% to $1.1335 while eur/gbp dipped by 0.08% to £0.8775, despite upbeat economic reports from several Eurozone members including France and Germany.
USD/CAD rose 0.36% to C$1.2984, up 0.36%, as the Canadian dollar, which is sensitive to moves in oil prices, came under pressure amid a more than 3% slump in oil prices.
USD/JPY traded at Y113.23, down 0.04%, as demand grew for safe-haven yen, after North Korea launched a new missile on Tuesday, stoking geopolitical concerns.