1st LD Writethru: U.S. dollar falls on downbeat data

The U.S. dollar decreased against most major currencies on Tuesday as the country's economic data came out negative.

Economic activity in the U.S. manufacturing sector contracted in November, the first time in 36 months, according to a report from the Institute for Supply Management Tuesday.

The U.S. manufacturing purchasing managers' index registered 48.6 percent in November, a decrease of 1.5 percentage points from the October reading of 50.1 percent, said the report. The latest reading was also below market consensus of 50.5 percent.

Meanwhile, data from the eurozone showed that manufacturing growth in the region hit a 19-month high, which lowered market expectation for the European Central Bank to unleash further stimulus this month.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was down 0.37 percent at 99.795 in late trading.

In late New York trading, the euro rose to 1.0630 dollars from 1.0567 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound climbed to 1.5079 dollars from 1.5060 U.S. dollars in the previous session. The Australian dollar hiked to 0.7329 dollar from 0.7235 dollar.

The U.S. dollar bought 122.87 Japanese yen, lower than 123.09 yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar fell to 1.0278 Swiss franc from 1.0290 Swiss franc, and it went up to 1.3375 Canadian dollars from 1.3355 Canadian dollars. Endit