WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. Dollar is trading higher against major currencies on Thursday, amid rising worries about global economic growth, volatile financial markets, political uncertainty in the U.S. due to the ongoing partial government shutdown and doubts about China and the U.S. striking a trade deal ahead of expiry of the 90-day truce.
The Euro, at $1.1309, is down by about 0.63% against the greenback. The currency dropped to a low of $1.1290.
The European Central Bank left its policy rate unchanged today and said rates will likely remain at record lows till summer.
ECB President Mario Draghi said that risks surrounding the euro area growth outlook have moved to the downside due to uncertainties stemming from geopolitical factors, the threat of protectionism and financial market volatility.
Draghi asserted that significant monetary policy stimulus remained necessary for the euro area to support the further build-up of domestic price pressures and headline inflation developments over the medium term.
The Japanese currency, moving in a tight range around the unchanged line, is trading at 109.58 yen against the dollar, down marginally from previous close.
The Pound Sterling is also down marginally against the greenback, quoting at $1.3059. The sterling moved between 1.3012 and 1.3095 today. The Canadian loonie is trading at 1.3350 a dollar.
The dollar index futures for March are up 0.455 or 0.48%, at 96.23, after rising to 96.37 earlier.
In Eurozone economic news, survey data from IHS Markit showed that Eurozone private sector expanded at the weakest pace in five-and-a-half years at the start of the year, led by weaker pace of growth in both manufacturing and services, defying expectations for further improvement.
The flash Composite Purchasing Managers' Index, or PMI, dropped to a 66-month low of 50.7 from 51.1 in December. Economists had forecast a score of 51.4.
In U.S. economic news, a report from the Labor Department showed initial jobless claims fell to their lowest level in almost fifty years in the week ended January 19th. The report said initial jobless claims slid to 199,000, a decrease of 13,000 from the previous week's revised level of 212,000.
The drop surprised economists, who had expected jobless claims to rise to 220,000 from the 213,000 originally reported for the previous week.
Meanwhile, a separate report from the Conference Board showed a modest decrease by its index of leading U.S. economic indicators in the month of December.
The Conference Board said its leading economic index edged down by 0.1% in December after rising by 0.2% in November. The slight drop by the index matched economist estimates.
'The US LEI declined slightly in December and the recent moderation in the LEI suggests that the US economic growth rate may slow down this year,' said Ataman Ozyildirim, Director of Economic Research at the Conference Board.
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