US Dollar
The U.S. dollar traded lower against its major peers after the mixed U.S. economic data released yesterday. The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing purchasing managers' index declined to 52.9 in February from 53.5 in January, missing expectations of a decline to 53.4. That was the lowest reading since January 2014. Personal spending decreased 0.2% in January, after a 0.3% fall in December. Personal income climbed 0.3% in January, after a 0.3% rise in December. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index excluding food and energy rose 0.1% in January, in line with expectations, after a flat reading in December.
EURO
The euro traded mixed in the Asian session ahead of the release of the retail sales data in Germany.
The British pound
The pound rose in the Asian market on Tuesday against the US dollar, rebounding from its lowest level in nearly a week, ahead of the British construction industry data for the past month.
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar rose versus the greenback, after the Reserve Bank of Australia left its cash rate unchanged today at 2.25% after having cut the benchmark rates to a record low last month. Governor Glenn Stevens stated that further easing may be appropriate in the future in order to spur demand and achieve the targeted inflation rate.
The policy board of the RBA will assess the necessity in the net meetings. He repeated that the Australian dollar remains" above estimates of its fundamental value" given the slump in commodity prices and that a lower exchange rate is needed to ensure economic growth that is currently "below-trend pace".
Australia's Building Permits rose more-than-expected by +7.9% in January. Analyst expected a decrease of -1.7%. The December reading was revised up from -3.3% to -2.8%. The Current Account Balance fell less-than-expected last quarter to seasonally adjust to -9.6 billion from -12.1 billion - the figure was revised up from 12.5 billion.
Japanese yen
The Japanese yen increased on solid wage data and traded higher against the greenback on Tuesday. Year-on-year, the Japanese Monetary Base for February had a reading of +36.7% compared to +37.4% a year ago. Labor Cash Earnings rose by +1.3%, above expectations of an increase of +0.6% in January. The previous reading was revised down from +1.6% to +1.3%.