Forex Pros – The U.S. dollar extended broad losses against its major counterparts on Tuesday, as markets brushed off concerns over political turmoil in Egypt and the euro and the pound posted strong gains. During European early afternoon trade, the greenback was lower against the euro, with EUR/USD rising 0.43% to hit 1.3752. Earlier, official data showed that level of employment in Germany rose for the 11th consecutive month in December, lifting the overall level to its highest point in over nine years. The greenback was also down against the pound, with GBP/USD climbing 0.58% to hit 1.6106. The pound was lifted by a report showing that manufacturing in the U.K. grew in January at its fastest pace since records began in 1992. Elsewhere, the greenback was down against the yen and the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY shedding 0.52% to hit 81.62 and USD/CHF sliding 0.27% to hit 0.9415. Earlier Tuesday, data showed that manufacturing activity in Switzerland fell less-than-expected in January, while a separate report said that Swiss retail sales declined unexpectedly in December. Meanwhile, the greenback was down against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD shedding 0.34% to hit 0.9974, AUD/USD soaring 0.92% to hit 1.0066 and NZD/USD climbing 0.46% to hit 0.7759. Earlier in the day, the Reserve Bank of Australia kept rates steady for February but signaled more rate hikes were on the way. The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.53%. Later in the day, the U.S. Institute of Supply Management was to publish data on manufacturing growth.

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