U.S. Dollar Advances Ahead Of Powell's Testimony

The U.S. dollar firmed against its major counterparts in the European session on Thursday, as investors await second Congressional testimony from Federal Reserve Chair Powell amid speculation that the central bank may quicken the pace of monetary tightening this year.

Powell will testify before the Senate Banking Committee at 10:00 am ET.

His appearance comes after the House testimony on Tuesday, when he spurred hopes for a faster pace of rate hikes in the wake of strong economic outlook.

Data from the Labor Department showed that first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week.

The report said initial jobless claims fell to 210,000 in the week ended February 24th.

Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 226,000.

Data from the Commerce Department showed that U.S. personal income increased slightly more than expected in January, while personal spending rose in line with estimates.

The report said that personal income climbed by 0.4 percent in January, while personal spending edged up by 0.2 percent.

The currency held steady against its major rivals in the Asian session, with the exception of the yen.

The greenback rose to 1.2163 against the euro, its strongest since January 18. The greenback is likely to find resistance around the 1.91 level.

Final data from IHS Markit showed that the Eurozone manufacturing sector continued to expand at a robust pace in February but the pace of growth slowed from January.

The factory Purchasing Managers' Index fell to a 4-month low of 58.6 from 59.6 in January.

The greenback reversed from an early 3-day low of 106.55 against the yen, rising to 107.00. The greenback is seen finding resistance around the 110.00 mark.

Survey data from the Cabinet Office showed that Japan's consumer confidence weakened unexpectedly in February, though slightly.

The seasonally adjusted consumer confidence index dropped to 44.3 in February from 44.7 in January.

The greenback firmed to 0.9483 against the Swiss franc, its highest since January 24. On the upside, 0.96 is seen as the next resistance level for the greenback.

The greenback strengthened to a 2-1/2-month high of 1.2865 against the loonie, after having fallen to 1.2827 at 2:45 am ET. The greenback is poised to challenge resistance around the 1.30 level.

On the flip side, the greenback surrendered some of its gains against the pound with the pair trading at 1.3776. This may be compared to a 1-1/2-month peak of 1.3727 hit at 5:00 am ET. The next possible support for the greenback is seen around the 1.43 mark.

Survey data from IHS Markit and the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply showed that the British manufacturing sector expanded at the weakest pace in eight months in February.

The Purchasing Managers' Index, or PMI, dropped slightly to 55.2 in February from 55.3 in January.

The greenback eased to 0.7231 against the kiwi and 0.7766 against the aussie, from its early 3-week high 0.7186 and more than 2-month high of 0.7713, respectively. If the greenback falls further, 0.74 and 0.79 are likely seen as its next support levels against the kiwi and the aussie, respectively.

The U.S. ISM manufacturing index for February and construction spending for January are set for release shortly.