The euro fell 0.2 percent to $1.0964

Good morning from Hamburg and welcome to our latest Daily FX Report of this week. Asian shares were firm on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve said it saw the economy and jobs continuing to strengthen, helping lift the dollar as traders bet that higher U.S. interest rates were around the corner. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.8 percent while Australian shares tacked on 0.3 percent and South Korean shares gained 0.2 percent. On Wall Street, U.S. stocks rose broadly on the Fed's optimism and strong corporate earnings, with S&P 500 rising 0.7 percent to 2,108.57. The Fed said in its statement after a policy-setting meeting on Wednesday the U.S. economy and job market continue to strengthen. The Fed also said it now only needs to see "some" more improvement in the labor market, a qualification that some analysts said suggested it believes the recent solid U.S. job gains will continue.

Anyway, we wish you a successful trading day!

Market Review – Fundamental Perspective

Confirmation that the Fed is on course to raise rates later this year was enough to send the dollar higher against most other currencies at a time when the focus for many countries remained on stimulating their respective economies. The dollar index rose to 97.160 , keeping intact its rebound from Monday's two-week low of 96.288. The euro fell 0.2 percent to $1.0964, near its lowest level so far this week. In recent weeks, the euro tends to fall when risk appetite is strong as it is used as a funding currency for investment in risk assets. The dollar also rose about 0.1 percent in early Asian trade to 124.075 yen, hitting its highest level so far this week. The dollar was steady on the day at 123.940 yen, not far from its overnight high of 124.03, while the euro was also nearly flat on the day at $1.0983. The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. unit against a basket of six major rivals, edged up to 97.187, after rising as high as 97.254 on Wednesday.

The CAD ended the session slightly weaker against its U.S. counterpart on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve stayed vague on the timing of its anticipated interest rate hike. The CAD, which was a mid-performer against other major currencies, rallied briefly after the Fed issued its statement. But the currency soon reversed that gain to trade slightly weaker than Tuesday's close. The CAD ended the session at C$1.2944 to the USD, or 77.26 U.S. cents. That was weaker than the Bank of Canada's official close of C$1.2927 on Tuesday.

Daily Technical Analysis

NZD/USD (Daily)

During the last three months the pair experienced a sharp decline and went from $0.76 per NZD to $0.65 where it rebounded. Since then we mainly saw a upward movement of the NZD against the USD. At the moment the pair is traded closed to its first support line but according to the indicators the momentum of the NZD may be to weak in order to gain some more pips. On the other hand, should the pair manage to pass the support at $0.6512, further significant losses of the NZD may be likely.

Support & Resistance (Daily)