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US Dollar Rises Early Wednesday Ahead of Housing Starts, New York Services, Durable Orders Data, FOMC Minutes

BY MT Newswires | ECONOMIC | 02/18/26 07:30 AM EST

07:30 AM EST, 02/18/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The US dollar rose against its major trading partners early Wednesday, except for a decline versus the pound, ahead of busy day of economic releases that starts with housing starts and durable goods orders data for December and the New York Federal Reserve's services reading for February, all at 8:30 am ET.

Weekly Redbook same-store sales data are due to be released at 8:55 am ET, followed by industrial production data for January at 9:15 am ET and an update to the Atlanta Fed's gross domestic product Nowcast estimate around midday.

Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman is due to speak at 1:00 pm ET and minutes of the Jan. 27-28 Federal Open Market Committee meeting are due to be released at 2:00 pm ET.

The day ends with the Treasury's TICS release at 4:00 pm ET.

Earlier Wednesday, the Mortgage Bankers Associated reported applications rose in the week ending Feb. 13, lifted by a decline in 30-year fixed mortgage rates.

A quick summary of foreign exchange activity heading into Wednesday:

EUR/USD fell to 1.1834 from 1.1852 at the Tuesday US close and 1.1838 at the same time Tuesday morning. There are no Eurozone data on Wednesday's schedule, but European Central Bank policy board member Isabel Schnabel is due to speak at 12:00 pm ET. The next European Central Bank meeting is scheduled for March 19.

GBP/USD rose to 1.3574 from 1.3562 at the Tuesday US close but was slightly below a level of 1.3575 at the same time Tuesday morning. UK consumer prices declined in January, slowing the year-over-year growth rate, according to data released overnight. The next Bank of England meeting is scheduled for March 19.

USD/JPY rose to 153.6900 from 153.2499 at the Tuesday US close and 153.1218 at the same time Tuesday morning. The Japanese trade balance turned to deficit in January from a surplus in the previous month, while Japanese business conditions improved in February. The next Bank of Japan meeting is scheduled for March 18-19.

USD/CAD rose to 1.3643 from 1.3639 at the Tuesday US close but was below a level of 1.3647 at the same time Tuesday morning. There are no Canadian data on Wednesday's schedule. The next Bank of Canada meeting is scheduled for March 18.

MT Newswires does not provide investment advice. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

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