Investing.com – The U.S. dollar moved off session lows against its rivals but remained under pressure as the euro continued to tack on gains amid expectations the European Central Bank will next week shed light on plans to unwind its massive bond-buying programme.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell by 0.25% to 93.38. The U.S. dollar remained on track to post a weekly loss against its rivals for the first time in four weeks.
The euro continued its march higher against the dollar, rising 0.32% to $1.181, on the heels of expectations for the European Central Bank to announce the end date of its quantitative easing program at its policy meeting next week.
ECB chief economist Peter Praet said on Wednesday the central bank would next week debate whether to cut bond purchases gradually, Reuters reported.
GBP/USD fell 0.01% in choppy trade as market participants digested the UK government's release of its post-Brexit plans for the Irish border including its backstop plan.
USD/CAD rose 0.24% to C$1.2977 as gains in the Canadian dollar on the back of rising oil prices were offset somewhat by ongoing uncertainty surrounding North American Free Trade Association (NAFTA) talks.
USD/JPY fell 0.39% ahead of slew of top-tier economic data including Japan GDP expected to show the economy contracted 0.4% quarter-on-quarter in the first three months of the year.
Emerging market currencies were also in focus Thursday as the USD/TRY fell to a week low after the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey raised its one-week lending rate (repo) rate by 125 basis points to 17.75%.