U.S. dollar rises on upbeat data

NEW YORK, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. dollar increased against most major currencies on Wednesday as economic data from the country came out positive

U.S. economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in December, the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said Wednesday.

The December PMI registered 59.7 percent, an increase of 1.5 percentage points from the November reading of 58.2 percent and beating market consensus.

Meanwhile, U.S. construction spending during November 2017 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,257 billion U.S. dollars, 0.8 percent above the revised October estimate.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was up 0.37 percent at 92.212 in late trading.

In late New York trading, the euro fell to 1.2015 U.S. dollars from 1.2045 U.S. dollars, and the British pound dropped to 1.3514 U.S. dollars from 1.3594 U.S. dollars. The Australian dollar decreased to 0.7833 U.S. dollar from 0.7829 U.S. dollar.

The U.S. dollar bought 112.52 Japanese yen, higher than 112.34 yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar rose to 0.9777 Swiss franc from 0.9724 Swiss franc, and it edged up to 1.2545 Canadian dollars from 1.2508 Canadian dollars. Enditem