The dollar edged higher against the other major currencies on Tuesday, despite the release of downbeat U.S. data, as investors continued to focus on the Federal Reserve’s upcoming policy statement on Thursday. The dollar was lower against the yen, with USD/JPY down 0.46% at 119.68. The greenback showed little reaction to data showing that U.S. retail sales rose 0.2% in August, compared to expectations for an increase of 0.3%, Retail sales gained 0.7% in July, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 0.6% uptick. Core retail sales, which exclude automobiles, added 0.1% last month, confounding expectations for a 0.2% rise. Core retail sales increased by 0.6% in July, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 0.4% gain.
Separately, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said its Empire State manufacturing index improved to minus 14.67 this month from minus 14.92 in August, compared to expectations for a reading of minus 0.75. Earlier Tuesday, the Bank of Japan said it had not changed its policy calling for ¥80 trillion in annual asset purchases by the central bank, to help spur inflation and stimulate growth. The dollar was higher against the euro, with EUR/USD slipping 0.12% to 1.1304. Data on Tuesday showed that the ZEW economic sentiment index for Germany fell to 12.1 in September from 25.0 the previous month. Analysts had expected the index to hit 18.4 this month.
Elsewhere, the dollar was higher against the pound and the Swiss franc, with GBP/USD down 0.15% at 1.5403 and with USD/CHF rising 0.23% at 0.9704. The pound briefly strengthened after the U.K. Office for National Statistics reported that the consumer price index rose 0.2% last month, in line with expectations. Year-on-year, U.K. consumer prices were flat in August, in line with expectations. Core CPI, which excludes food, energy, alcohol and tobacco, rose at an annualized rate of 1.0% in August, as expected.
The Australian dollar was weaker, with AUD/USD down 0.19% to 0.7122, while NZD/USD held steady at 0.6325. The Aussie came under pressure after the minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s latest policy meeting reiterated that very low interest rates will continue to support growth. Meanwhile, USD/CAD was little changed at 1.3256. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was steady at 95.39.