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Investing.com - The U.S. dollar edged down against a basket of other currencies on Friday in a thinly traded day as major markets in the U.S. and Europe were closed for Easter weekend.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, fell 0.01% to 89.75 as of 4:42 AM ET (8:42 GMT).
The dollar was unmoved by a flurry of economic data on Thursday that showed a strengthening U.S. economy.
The Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index excluding food and energy, rose 1.6% in the 12 months through February, in line with economists’ forecast.
Another report showed that initial jobless claims dropped by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 215,000 for the week ended March 24, beating economists’ forecast for a drop to 230,000.
Meanwhile Commerce Department said consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, met expectations, rising 0.2% last month, meeting economists’ forecasts.
European and U.S. markets were closed on Friday, and trading is expected to be thin.
The dollar fell to a low against the safe haven yen, with USD/JPY losing 0.23% to trade at 106.19.
The euro was higher, with EUR/USD up 0.24% to 1.2330. Meanwhile GBP/USD jumped 0.29% to 1.4059.
Elsewhere, the Australian dollar was higher, with AUD/USD rising 0.33% at 0.7701, while NZD/USD inched up 0.19% to 0.7245.
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