U.S. Dollar Appreciates Amid Economic Optimism

The U.S. dollar moved higher against its major counterparts in the Asian session on Thursday, as a slew of upbeat economic data released overnight added to optimism about the economic recovery.

U.S. retail sales rebounded much more than anticipated in January driven the additional government stimulus and relaxation measures.

Retail sales rose 5.3 percent in January, up from expectations of 1.1 percent.

The producer price index and industrial production also beat forecasts in January.

The minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's January meeting showed that the central bank is prepared to keep its easy monetary policy on hold to support a job market hit by the pandemic.

"Participants noted that economic conditions were currently far from the Committee's longer-run goals and that the stance for policy would need to remain accommodative until those goals were achieved," the minutes showed.

U.S. President Joe Biden met with 10 top union leaders on Wednesday to discuss the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package and a separate plan to modernize U.S. infrastructure aimed to boost the economy.

U.S. stimulus measures, a steep fall in new infections and rapid vaccine rollout bolstered hopes for a faster recovery from the pandemic.

The greenback recovered to 1.3843 against the pound, after falling to 1.3877 at 7:45 pm ET. If the currency rises further, it may locate resistance around the 1.37 level.

The greenback bounced off to 105.92 against the yen, from a 2-day low of 105.70 seen at 7:45 pm ET. The greenback may face resistance around the 108.00 region.

The greenback edged higher to 0.8991 against the franc, off its early low of 0.8976. The greenback is seen finding resistance around the 0.92 mark.

The greenback rebounded from its early lows of 1.2687 against the loonie, 0.7202 against the kiwi and 0.7772 against the aussie and was trading at 1.2712, 0.7178 and 0.7747, respectively. The next possible resistance for the greenback is seen around 1.29 against the loonie, 0.70 against the kiwi and 0.76 against the aussie.

The greenback staged a brief recovery to 1.2036 against the euro, following a low of 1.2050 logged at 8:00 pm ET. The greenback is likely to test resistance around the 1.19 region.

Looking ahead, at 7.30 am ET, the European Central Bank releases the accounts of the monetary policy meeting of the governing council held on January 20 and 21.

The U.S. weekly jobless claims for the week ended February 13, housing starts, building permits and import and export prices for January are due out in the New York session.

Eurozone flash consumer sentiment index for February is set for release at 10:00 am ET.