1st LD Writethru: U.S. dollar mixed amid data

The U.S. dollar fluctuated against most major currencies Thursday as the job data came slightly below market consensus.

In the week ending Aug. 1, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims was 270,000, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's unrevised level and slightly below market estimate, reported the U.S. Labor Department Thursday.

The four-week moving average was 268,250, a decrease of 6,500 from the previous week's unrevised average of 274,750.

Investors will also keep a close eye on Friday's nonfarm- payrolls report for any further clues on the Federal Reserve's first rate hike in almost nine years.

In late New York trading, the euro gained to 1.0922 dollars from 1.0898 dollars of the previous session, and the British pound decreased to 1.5514 dollars from 1.5599 dollars. The Australian dollar went down to 0.7341 dollars from 0.7348 dollars. The dollar bought 124.71 Japanese yen, lower than 124.88 yen of the previous session. The dollar moved up to 0.9810 Swiss francs from 0.9792 Swiss francs, and it moved down to 1.3120 Canadian dollars from 1.3191 Canadian dollars. Endite