Investing.com - U.S. new home sales rose more than expected in April, fuelling optimism over the health of the housing sector, official data showed on Tuesday.
In a report, the U.S. Commerce Department said new home sales jumped by 6.8% to a seasonally adjusted 517,000 units last month, compared to expectations for a gain of 5.0% to 510,000.
New home sales in March were revised up to 484,000 units from a previously reported 481,000 units.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.0905 from around 1.0913 ahead of the release of the data, GBP/USD was at 1.5368 from 1.5375 earlier, while USD/JPY was at 123.22 from 123.11 earlier.
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was at 97.26, compared to 97.16 ahead of the report.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock markets were lower after the open. The Dow 30 shed 0.7%, the S&P 500 dipped 0.65%, while the Nasdaq Composite slumped 0.8%.
Elsewhere, in the commodities market, gold futures traded at $1,186.90 a troy ounce, compared to $1,188.20 ahead of the data, while crude oil traded at $58.62 a barrel from $58.81 earlier.