USD weakened slightly against most of its major rivals in the European session on Thursday as investors waited for the release of the U.S. September inflation data later in the day, which could impact markets’ thinking on the Federal Reserve’s near-term rate path.
The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY), measuring the U.S. currency's value relative to a basket of foreign currencies, slipped 0.04% from the previous close to 102.89.
The U.S. Labor Department is set to publish a report on consumer prices for September at 12:30 GMT. The report is expected to show that the headline inflation rate eased to 2.3% YoY last month from 2.5% YoY in August, and the core inflation rate remained unchanged at 3.2% YoY in September.
Apart from inflation figures, investors will also pay close attention to the U.S. weekly unemployment claims.
All the data will be thoroughly evaluated by markets, looking for more clarity on the state of the economy and the prospects of the monetary policy in the U.S.
The minutes from the Fed’s September 17-18 meeting, released yesterday, revealed that almost all policymakers “saw upside risks to the inflation outlook as having diminished, while downside risks to employment were seen as having increased”.
Investors' sentiment also continues to be undermined by lingering worries about tensions in the Middle East and concerns about Hurricane Milton.