2018.07.2514:32:00UTC+00Dollar Losing Ground Ahead Of Trade Meeting

The dollar is losing ground against its major rivals Wednesday afternoon. Traders are in a cautious mood as they await news from today's meeting between President Trump and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. The talks are expected to center around the tariffs on the auto industry.

A report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday showed a bigger than expected drop in new home sales in the U.S. in the month of June.

The report said new home sales plunged by 5.3 percent to an annual rate of 631,000 in June after jumping by 3.9 percent to a rate of 666,000 in May. Economists had expected new home sales to fall by 2.8 percent.

The dollar rose to a high of $1.1664 against the Euro Wednesday, but has since retreated to around $1.17.

Germany's business sentiment weakened for the second straight month in July as escalating trade tensions with the U.S. weighed on firms' expectations, a closely watched survey showed Wednesday.

The business confidence index fell to 101.7 in July from 101.8 in June, survey data from the Munich-based Ifo Institute revealed. This was the lowest score since March 2017. The expected level for July was 101.5.

Germany's construction orders increased in May from April, data from Destatis showed Wednesday. The seasonally, working-day and price-adjusted orders in construction rose 4.6 percent month-over-month in May.

French producer prices in the domestic market rose marginally in June, the statistical office Insee reported Wednesday. Producer prices edged up 0.1 percent month-over-month in June, slower than the 0.7 percent rise in May.

The buck reached a high of $1.3133 against the pound sterling Wednesday, but has since eased back to around $1.3175

UK mortgage approvals increased to a 9-month high in June, data from UK Finance showed Wednesday. The number of mortgages approved for house purchases rose to 40,541 in June from 39,528 in May. This was the highest since September 2017.

The greenback has dropped to around Y110.800 against the Japanese Yen this afternoon, from an early high of Y111.384.