US Dollar
The U.S. dollar traded lower against its major peers after Fed Chair Janet Yellen’s testimony yesterday. Yellen said that it is unlikely that the Fed will raise its interest rate in "the next couple of FOMC meetings" as wage growth remains too low even as the job market improves. The Fed Chair noted that the central bank will change the wording of the policy statement when it will raise its interest rate and that the FED will not rush into raising interest rates.
EURO
The euro traded slightly higher against the greenback after Euro zone's finance ministers approved the four-month bailout extension on Tuesday and accepted the list of reforms proposed by the Greek government.
The British pound
GBP/USD rose during the Asian session on Wednesday, taking advantage of the dollar’s weakening and ahead of BOE’s Governor, Mark Carney’s speech
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar jumped as data on the HSBC China PMI showed an increase into a positive territory. The HSBC Manufacturing PMI rose from 49.7 to 50.1 to a four month-high, above the estimated reading of 49.6. A reading above 50 represents growth in activity. Domestic demand firmed while new export orders contracted for the first time since April 2014. Both input and output prices remain in contraction, according to HSBC.
China is Australia's biggest trade partner. Construction Work Done for the fourth quarter decreased less than expected by -0.2% compared to a forecast of -0.8% and a previous reading of -2.8% (revised from -2.2%). The Wage Price Index on a quarterly basis remained unchanged at +0.6%, analysts expected wages to rise by +0.7%. Year-on-year, the Wage Price Index declined from +2.6% to +2.5% in line with expectations.
Japanese yen
While, the Japanese yen traded higher against the greenback on Wednesday in the absence of any major economic reports from Japan.