Investing.com - The dollar fell against other currencies on Thursday after disappointing U.S. economic data.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.49% to 91.66 as of 11:51 AM ET (16:51 GMT).
The greenback was hit after reports showed that U.S. producer prices unexpectedly fell in December, the first drop in almost one-and-a-half years, while initial jobless claims unexpectedly rose last week.
The Labor Department reported that its producer price index slipped 0.1% last month, the first decline since August 2016.
A separate report showed that initial claims for unemployment benefits increased by 11,000 to 261,000 last week, the highest level since late September.
The dollar was also held back by a strong euro. EUR/USD was at a high of 1.20343, up 0.80% for the day.
The euro strengthened after the minutes of the European Central Bank’s December meeting said officials could consider a gradual shift in policy guidance from early 2018.
Any changes to the bank’s guidance would likely be seen by investors as an indication that policymakers are preparing to start winding down their bond buying stimulus program.
Elsewhere, the dollar pared back gains against the yen, with USD/JPY down 0.05% to 111.38. The Australian and New Zealand dollars were up, with AUD/USD rising 0.48% to 0.7880 and NZD/USD increasing 0.63% to 0.7243.