Dollar falls on mixed European news, economic data

The U.S. dollar fell against most major currencies in late New York trading on Thursday as mixed news from Europe and U.S. economic data fluctuated the currency markets. Greek parliament on Thursday passed additional austerity measures, including pay and staff cuts in the civil service and pension cuts. The news helped to restore investors'confidence on the country's fiscal status and supported the euro. However, a joint statement on Thursday from Germany and France said no final decision will be made at a European Union summit this weekend, but could take until Wednesday at the latest. The euro wavered amid mixed news. The shared currency managed to rally 0.18 percent against the dollar. Meanwhile, U.S. economic data came mixed on Thursday. The National Association of Realtors said that existing home sales fell 3 percent to 4.91 million homes in September, well below economists'estimation of 6 million. The factory activity in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region expanded surprisingly in Oct. as the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank said its business activity index jumped to 8.7 from -17.5 in September. The U.S. Labor Department said that initial jobless claims dropped 6,000 to 403,000 last week, suggesting the job markets slightly improved. The dollar was traded in a choppy session on Thursday as the dollar index dipped 0.22 percent to 76.94. In late Thursday trading, the dollar bought 76.85 Japanese yen, comparing with 76.78 from late Wednesday. The euro rose to 1.3777 dollars from 1.3747. The British pound also rose to 1.5790 dollars from 1.5764. The dollar fell from 0.9032 Swiss francs to 0.8942, and also fell to 1. 0142 Canadian dollars from 1.0194.