Investing.com - The dollar edged higher against the other major currencies on Thursday, but gains were capped by the release of disappointing U.S. housing sector data and as investors remained cautious ahead of the Jackson Hole summit set to begin later in the day.
Confidence over the health of the U.S. housing market was dented after the National Association of Realtors said existing home sales unexpectedly fell in July.
The data came after the U.S. Labor Department said the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance last week rose less than expected.
Sentiment on the greenback remained fragile after U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he would be willing to shut down the government in order to get the funding needed for his proposed wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Trump also warned that he might terminate the NAFTA trade treaty with Canada and Mexico.
Investors were also cautious ahead of this week's annual meeting of top central bankers and economists in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where the heads of the U.S. and European central banks will be making keynote speeches.
EUR/USD slipped 0.11% to 1.1795, as investors were looking ahead to a speech by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi in Jackson Hole on Friday.
Draghi was not widely expected to deliver any new policy message in his speech, despite speculation over how soon the central bank plans to start scaling back its stimulus program.
The yen remained was still lower, with USD/JPY up 0.27% at 109.32, while USD/CHF held steady at 0.9644.
Elsewhere, GBP/USD eased up 0.08% to trade at 1.2809, off a two-month low of 1.2774 hit overnight, after data showed that UK economic growth was unrevised in the second quarter.
The Australian and New Zealand dollars remained weaker, with AUD/USD down 0.09% at 0.7897 and with NZD/USD shedding 0.16% to 0.7213.
Meanwhile, USD/CAD fell 0.11% to 1.2538.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.09 % at 93.22 by 10:55 a.m. ET (14:55 GMT).