US Dollar advances to highs near 96.70

The greenback, tracked by the US Dollar Index, is prolonging its recent upside and is currently testing daily highs near 96.70.

US Dollar boosted by data

The index seems to be consolidating Friday’s gains above the 96.00 handle today, as the buck remains supported by recent upbeat results in the US docket. In fact, US Retail Sales have beaten expectations during June, helping USD to close its second straight week with gains and removing concerns over the health of the US economy.

Furthermore, Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow tool now forecasts US GDP to growth at an annualized 2.4% during the second quarter.

Light session on the US data front today, with the NAHB index and TIC flows in the pipeline.

US Dollar relevant levels

The index is gaining 0.05% at 96.63 and a breakout of 96.86 (high Jun.27) would aim for 97.09 (high Mar.16) and finally 98.58 (high Mar.1). On the flip side, the next support aligns at 95.86 (20-day sma) followed by 95.38 (low Jul.5) and then 95.03 (55-day sma).