US dollar climbs amid data

New York, Feb 4 (IANS) The US dollar strengthened against its major rivals in late trading as market participants digested some key economic data.Economic activity in the US manufacturing sector rebounded in January after a five-month contraction, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) stood at 50.9 per cent, an increase of 3.1 percentage points from the previous month's level, showed the report.A reading above 50 per cent indicates expansion in the manufacturing sector, while a rate below signals contraction. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index rising to 48.5 per cent in January.The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was up 0.41 per cent at 97.7992 in late trading.In late New York trading, the euro fell to US $1.1063 from US $1.1087 in the previous session, and the British pound fell to US $1.2997 from US $1.3198 in the previous session. The Australian dollar was down to US $0.6688 from US $0.6694.The US dollar bought 108.68 Japanese yen, higher than 108.35 Japanese yen of the previous session. The US dollar rose to 0.9660 Swiss franc from 0.9635 Swiss franc, and it was up to 1.3295 Canadian dollars from 1.3234 Canadian dollars.
--IANS rt/