Forex - Dollar broadly lower on EU hopes, China PMI data

Forexpros - The U.S. dollar turned lower against its major counterparts on Monday, as hopes that European leaders were moving closer to resolving their debt crisis, while strong Chinese manufacturing data eased concerns over a slowdown in the world's largest economy.During U.S. morning trade, the greenback was down against the euro, with EUR/USD adding 0.24% to hit 1.3845.European Union leaders moved closer to an agreement on bank recapitalization on Sunday, while Germany and France neared an agreement on expanding the firepower of the euro zone's bailout fund. But divisions over restructuring Greek debt remained and a final agreement was not expected until Wednesday's meeting.Sentiment on the single currency was dented earlier after the preliminary composite PMI for the euro zone fell to 47.2 in October; the lowest level since July 2009, down from September's 49.1, adding to fears that the euro zone may be slipping into a recession.The greenback was also lower against the pound, with GBP/USD rising 0.23% to hit 1.5987.In addition, the greenback was lower against the yen and the Swiss franc with USD/JPY slipping 0.24% to hit 76.10 and USD/CHF down 0.22% to hit 0.8804.Earlier Monday, Japan's Finance Minister Jun Azumi reiterated warnings against speculators pushing the yen too high, after the currency surged to a record high against the dollar on Friday, saying Tokyo would take "decisive" steps if necessary.The greenback was also weaker against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand cousins, with USD/CAD shedding 0.29% to hit 1.0034, AUD/USD surging 0.75% to hit 1.0452 and NZD/USD advancing 0.61% to hit 0.8081.Official data released earlier showed that Australian producer price inflation fell more-than-expected in the third quarter, adding to speculation that the country's central bank could cut interest rates later this week.The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.24% to hit 76.34.Also Monday, a preliminary report showed that the Chinese HSBC manufacturing activity index rose to 51.1 in October, a five-month high, after contracting in the three previous months.
Forexpros - Forexpros offers a diverse set of professional tools for Forex, Futures and CFDs. These include real-time data streams, technical and fundamental analysis by in-house experts, and a widely used economic calendar and Forex News.