US Dollar rises amid upbeat Economic Data

New York, Oct 24: The US dollar increased against other major currencies as the economic data from the country came out better than expected.

The seasonally adjusted US flash Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) registered 54 in October, up from 53.1 in September and well above the neutral 50 threshold, according to the data provider Markit on Friday, Xinhua reported.

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major currencies, was up 0.76 percent at 97.114 in late trading. In late New York trading, the euro fell to $1.1006 from $1.1112 in the previous session, and the British pound declined to $1.5323 from $1.5389 in the previous session. The Australian dollar decreased to $0.7211 from $0.7212 dollar.

The US dollar bought 121.40 Japanese yen, higher than 120.71 yen of the previous session. The US dollar climbed to 0.9795 Swiss franc from 0.9737 Swiss franc and went up to 1.3183 Canadian dollars from 1.3101 Canadian dollars.

The latest reading beat market consensus of 53 and pointed to the fastest upturn in manufacturing activity since May. The euro dropped further against the greenback on Friday as the prospect of more stimulus in the euro zone continued to weigh on the shared currency.

In the previous session, the European Central Bank president Mario Draghi suggested that the bank may inject fresh monetary stimulus into the region in December to combat weak inflation.