Dollar Uncertain Versus Majors Amid Encouraging Housing Data

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The dollar barely budged against other major currencies on Tuesday, as traders shrugged off a mixed bag of economic data, including a relatively upbeat report on the beleaguered housing sector.

Trading was subdued ahead of the pivotal monthly jobs report set for release on Friday.

Consumer confidence unexpectedly decreased in the month of September, according to a report released by the Conference Board on Tuesday, as Americans continued to express anxiety about the employment situation.

The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index slipped to 53.1 in September from a revised 54.5 in August. Economists had been expecting the index to increase to 57.0 from the 54.1 originally reported for the previous month.

Meanwhile, home prices continue to show a notable decline compared to a year ago. Standard and Poor's released a report showing that the pace of decline in home prices slowed for the sixth consecutive month in July.

The report showed that the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index fell at an annual rate of 13.3 percent in July compared to the 15.4 percent drop reported for June.

The dollar held its ground versus the euro, inching to a new 2-week high of 1.4526 before leveling off. With the modest advance, the dollar moved further away from a yearly low of 1.4843.

The Eurozone economy has broadly stabilized after the crisis, but the situation remains fragile and outlook is uncertain, chairman of the euro group of nations, Jean-Claude Juncker reportedly said Tuesday.

The buck remained uncertain for a second day versus the sterling, edging slightly lower to 1.6000. Earlier this week, the dollar hit a 4-month high of 1.5769.

The buck was little-changed versus the yen, holding just below 90. The dollar plummeted to 88.21 on Monday, moving closer to a 13-year low of 87.08 before finding support.

Japan's Finance Minister Hirohisa Fujii said the government may need to intervene in the foreign exchange market if the yen continues to soar, reversing the comments made yesterday.

(Market News Provided by RTTNews)