Dollar edges up ahead of non-farm payroll report

The U.S. dollar recovered against most major currencies Thursday amid a string of mixed U.S. economic data as investors still awaited the non-farm payroll report for April. The April U.S. Purchasing Managers' Index registered 54.9, up from March reading of 53.7, indicating expansion in manufacturing for the 11th consecutive month, according to the Institute for Supply Management. The number exceeded analysts estimates and supported the dollar. In a separate report, the number of Americans who initially applied for jobless benefits in the week ending April 26 increased 14,000 to a seasonally adjusted 344,000, the highest level since February, the Labor Department said before the opening bell. Meanwhile, U.S. personal income increased 0.5 percent in March, the strongest gain since last August. While personal consumption expenditures surged 0.9 percent, the fastest pace in more than four and a half years, according to the Commerce Department. The British pound rose to near five-year high versus the dollar, continuously boosted by the upbeat growth data from Britain for the first quarter. In the previous session, the U.S. dollar retreated after data showed U.S. economy grew at a slower pace in the first quarter. The real GDP increased at an annual rate of 0.1 percent in the first quarter, the slowest pace since the fourth quarter of 2012, according to the "advance" estimate released by the Commerce Department. The Federal Reserve policymakers said Wednesday that they would keep the ultra-low interest rates for a "considerable time" when the bond-buying program ends. After a two-day monetary policy meeting, the Fed reduced monthly bond purchases by another 10 billion dollars to 45 billion dollars. In late New York trading, the euro dropped to 1.3865 dollars from 1.3872 dollars of the previous session, and the British pound increased to 1.6895 dollars from 1.6887 dollars. The Australian dollar dipped to 0.9272 dollar from 0.9296 dollar. The dollar bought 102.30 Japanese yen, higher than 102.11 yen in the previous session. The greenback moved down to 0.8792 Swiss franc from 0.8799 Swiss franc, and went up to 1.0967 Canadian dollars from 1.0947 in the previous session.