Investing.com - The dollar remained close to six-month highs against a basket of other major currencies on Tuesday, as investors awaited the release of U.S. consumer confidence data later in the day, as well as a raft of economic indicators due later in the week.
Demand for the dollar continued to be underpinned ahead of preliminary data on U.S. second-quarter growth and the Federal Reserve’s latest rate statement, both due on Wednesday. Investors were also awaiting the July employment report on Friday.
Earlier this month Fed Chair Janet Yellen said that rates could rise sooner if the recovery in the labor market continued.
The euro was near eight-month lows against the dollar, with EUR/USD down 0.13% at 1.3422, not far from Friday’s trough of 1.3420.
The euro remained under heavy selling pressure amid concerns over the divergence in monetary policy between the European Central Bank and its major peers.
The euro zone was to release what would be closely watched data on consumer prices on Thursday, amid concerns over persistently low levels of inflation in the currency bloc.
USD/JPY edged up 0.16% to 101.02, while USD/CHF added 0.07% to 0.9046.
Sterling was still close to one-month lows, with GBP/USD down 0.19% to 1.6952.
Official data earlier showed that U.K. net lending to individuals rose by £2.5 billion last month, below expectations for an increase of £2.6 billion. Net lending to individuals in May was revised up to a £3.0 billion increase from a previously estimated £2.7 billion gain.
Elsewhere, the New Zealand dollar fell to one-and-a-half month lows, with NZD/USD down 0.35% to 0.8517. The Australian and Canadian dollars were slightly lower, with AUD/USD slipping 0.15% to 0.9392 and USD/CAD edging up 0.13% to 1.0815.
The US Dollar Index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, edged up 0.08% to 81.18, not far from Friday’s six month highs of 81.20.