2009.08.2000:29:00UTC+00Dollar Slightly Up Against Majors

Thursday morning in Asia, the U.S. dollar strengthened slightly against its major counterparts.

The dollar, which closed yesterday's trading at 94.06 against the yen rose to 94.42 in early Asian deals on Thursday. The next upside target for the dollar-yen pair is seen around the 95.0 level.

During early Asian deals on Thursday, the dollar climbed to 1.4209 against the euro and 1.6506 against the pound. If the dollar gains further, it may likely target 1.638 against the pound and 1.409 against the euro. The euro-dollar and the pound-dollar pairs were worth 1.4225 and 1.6532, respectively at yesterday's close.

The dollar advanced against the Swiss franc during early Asian deals on Thursday. As of now, the dollar-franc pair is worth 1.0685, up from yesterday's close of 1.0663. The near term resistance for the U.S. currency is seen around the 1.078 level.

In the upcoming European session, the Swiss trade balance for July and ZEW survey report for August and the U.K. July retail sales are expected.

Across the Atlantic, the U.S. Labor Department is due to release its customary weekly jobless claims report for the week ended August 15th at 8:30 am ET. Economists estimate claims to have eased to 553,000 in the week.

The Conference Board is scheduled to release a report on the U.S. leading index for July at 10 am ET. The consensus estimate calls for a 0.6% increase in the leading indicators index for the month.

At the same time, the results of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve's manufacturing survey are due out. Economists expect the diffusion index of current activity to show a reading of -2 for August.

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