U.S. Dollar Roughly Flat Amid Choppy Trading

(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar has shown a lack of direction over the course of trading on Thursday after trending higher over the past few days.

Currently, the U.S. dollar index is down by just 0.01 points or less than a tenth of a percent at 104.58.

The greenback is trading at 134.72 yen versus the 134.84 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Wednesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0598 compared to yesterday's $1.0605.

The choppy trading on the day comes as traders express some uncertainty about the outlook for interest rates following yesterday's release of the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting.

The Fed minutes offered few surprised but reiterated that the central bank will continue to raise interest rates in its battle against inflation.

With the Fed warning about the impact of labor market tightness, the Labor Department released a report showing an unexpected dip in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended February 18th.

The report said initial jobless claims edged down to 192,000, a decrease of 3,000 from the previous week's revised level of 195,000.

The dip surprised economists, who had expected jobless claims to inch up to 200,000 from the 194,000 originally reported for the previous week.

Meanwhile, revised data released by the Commerce Department showed the U.S. economy grew by slightly less than previously estimated in the fourth quarter of 2022.

The report said real gross domestic product jumped by 2.7 percent in the fourth quarter compared to the previously reported 2.9 percent surge. Economists had expected GDP growth to be unrevised.

The Commerce Department said the slower than previously estimated growth primarily reflected a downward revision to consumer spending.