WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar was mostly subdued against major currencies on Thursday, amid a slew of economic data from across the globe and as traders awaited the outcome of the OPEC meet in Vienna.
Conflicting reports on U.S.-China trade front weighed as well on the U.S. currency.
Data from the Commerce Department showed U.S. trade deficit narrowed to $47.2 billion in October from a revised $51.1 billion in September. Economists had expected the trade deficit to narrow to $48.7 billion from the $52.5 billion originally reported for the previous month.
The lower deficit was due to a 1.7% drop in imports at $254.3 billion. Exports were down 0.2% to $207.1 billion in October.
Another report from the Commerce Department said new orders for U.S. manufactured goods increased in line with economist estimates in the month of October, rising by 0.3% after falling by a revised 0.8% in September.
Economists had expected orders to rise by 0.3% compared to the 0.6% drop originally reported for the previous month.
Orders for durable goods climbed by 0.5% compared to the previously reported 0.6% increase, while orders for non-durable goods came in unchanged.
Data from the Labor Department showed initial jobless claims slipped to 203,000 in the week ended November 30th, a decrease of 10,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 213,000. The drop came as a surprise to economists, who had expected jobless claims to inch up to 215,000.
The dollar index opened at 97.59 and eased to a low of 97.36 a little past noon. It edged up to 97.44 subsequently but dropped to 97.39 later on, losing about 0.28%.
Against the Euro, the dollar was down at $1.1106, retreating from $1.1078.
The Eurozone economy grew as initially estimated in the third quarter, revised data from Eurostat showed. Gross domestic product grew 0.2% from the second quarter, when the economy expanded at the same rate.
On a yearly basis, GDP growth came in at 1.2%, in line with the previous estimate and the second quarter growth.
The pound sterling was stronger by more than 0.4% with a unit of sterling fetching $1.3163, as against $1.3098 earlier in the session.
Against the Japanese Yen, the dollar was stronger at 108.79, compared to previous close of 108.65 yen a dollar.
The loonie was up notably with the dollar-loonie pair at 1.3175. Canada's trade deficit narrowed to C$1.08 billion in October 2019 from an upwardly revised C$ 1.23 billion in September. Economists had expected a trade deficit of C$1.37 billion.
Against the Aussie, the dollar was gaining in strength with the pair trading at 0.6835.
The Swiss franc was up 0.1% against the dollar, with the dollar-franc pair at 0.9875.
Traders were also reacting to news that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has asked the chairmen of the House committees investigating President Donald Trump to proceed with articles of impeachment.
Pelosi accused Trump of abusing his power for his own benefit by withholding military aid from Ukraine in exchange for an announcement of an investigation into his political rival, former Vice President Joe Biden.
On the trade front, a Wall Street Journal report indicates the U.S. and China are at odds over the size of Chinese agricultural purchases.
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