Dollar Rises Against Major Counterparts On Strong Economic Data

(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar firmed against its major counterparts on Thursday, buoyed by upbeat economic data, and the European Central Bank hinting a pause in interest rate hike as soon as September.

Data released by the Commerce Department showed an unexpected acceleration in the pave of economic growth in the second quarter.

The report said, real gross domestic product surged by 2.4% in the second quarter after jumping by 2% in the first quarter. Economists had expected the pace of GDP growth to slow to 1.8%.

The upbeat data has raised some concerns about the outlook for interest rates following Wednesday's monetary policy by the Federal Reserve.

The Labor Department also released a report unexpectedly showing a modest decrease in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended July 22nd.

The report said initial jobless claims slipped to 221,000, a decrease of 7,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 228,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 235,000.

A separate report released by the Commerce Department showed new orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods soared by much more than expected in the month of June.

The dollar index, which was down at 100.55 in the Asian session, moved higher after the release of U.S. economic data, and climbed to a high of 101.84 later on in the session. The index was last seen at 101.77, up nearly 0.9% from the previous close.

Against the Euro, the dollar strengthened to 1.0966, gaining more than 1%. The dollar has firmed to 1.2794 against Pound Sterling, gaining from 1.2942.

Against the Japanese currency, the dollar is weak at 139.53 yen, giving up more than 0.5%.

The dollar is firm at 0.6706 against the Aussie, gaining from 0.6759. Against Swiss franc, the dollar is strong, fetching CHF0.8693 a unit, and against the Loonie, it is up at C$1.3225.