The U.S. dollar showed a mixed trend against its major rivals during European deals on Thursday, after the release of positive data on the nation's retail sales and weekly jobless claims supporting a recovery in the economy.

Data from the Commerce Department showed that U.S. retail sales spiked much more than expected in the month of March.

The Commerce Department said retail sales skyrocketed by 9.8 percent in March after tumbling by a revised 2.7 percent in February.

Economists had expected retail sales to surge up by 5.9 percent compared to the 3.0 percent slump originally reported for the previous month.

Excluding sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers, retail sales soared by 8.4 percent in March after plunging by a revised 2.5 percent in February. Ex-auto sales were expected to jump by 5.0 percent.

Data from the Labor Department showed that first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits pulled back much more than anticipated in the week ended April 10.

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims tumbled to 576,000, a decrease of 193,000 from the previous week's revised level of 769,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to decline to 700,000 from the 744,000 originally reported for the previous week.

With the much bigger than expected decrease, jobless claims fell to their lowest level since hitting 256,000 in the week ended March 14, 2020.

Speaking to the Economic Club of Washington on Wednesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that the interest rate will remain low until the central bank attains its goals on employment and inflation.

The Fed will taper asset purchases when there is substantial further progress towards its goals from last December, he added.

The dollar dropped in the Asian session, as treasury yields pulled back after Powell asserted that the accommodative policy won't change anytime soon.

The greenback retreated to 1.3807 against the pound, from a high of 1.3762 seen at 6:55 am ET. The pound-greenback pair had ended yesterday's trading session at 1.3774. The greenback is seen finding support around the 1.40 mark.

The Credit Conditions Survey results from the Bank of England showed that British lenders expect demand for secured lending as well as the availability of secured credit to households to increase in the next three months to end-May.

The availability of secured credit to households increased in three months to end-February, while demand for secured lending for both house purchase and remortgaging decreased in the first quarter.

The greenback remained lower against the yen, at a fresh 3-week low of 108.66. The pair had closed Wednesday's deals at 108.91. If the greenback falls further, it is likely to test support around the 106.00 region.

The greenback climbed to a 2-day high of 0.9246 against the franc from Wednesday's New York session close of 0.9218. Next key resistance for the greenback is likely seen around the 0.94 level.

The greenback appreciated to 1.1956 against the euro, after falling to 1.1993, which was its lowest level since March 4. The pair was worth 1.1978 when it closed deals on Wednesday. Should the greenback strengthens further, it is likely to test resistance around the 1.18 region. Final data from the statistical office Destatis showed that German consumer prices increased at the fastest rate in more than a year in March.

Consumer prices grew 1.7 percent year-on-year in March, in line with preliminary estimate, following a 1.3 percent rise in February. A similar higher rate was last reported in February 2020.

U.S. business inventories data for February and NAHB housing market index for April are scheduled for release in the New York session.

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