(RTTNews) - The euro saw strength against the other major currencies on Tuesday in New York. The euro moved to a near-term high against the sterling and recouped recent losses versus the dollar.

The latest report from the statistical office INSEE showed that households’ consumption expenditure in France increased 2% month-on-month in May, following a 0.9% fall in April. This is markedly faster-than-the-expected growth of 0.7%. It was the strongest increase since January 2004.

Meanwhile, German consumer confidence for July deteriorated to 3.9 points, down from a revised reading of 4.7 points in June and 4.6 points expected by economists. The reading for June was revised down from the 4.9 points reported earlier.

Also, the latest report from the research institute ISAE showed that Italy’s consumer confidence indicator declined to 100 in June from 103.2 in May. Economists had expected the index to record a reading of 102. The sub-index measuring consumers’ perception of the overall economic situation decreased to 82.3 from 84.7 in May.

The euro climbed to a five-day high against the sterling. The European currency moved as high as 0.7928 before easing back to 0.7920 later in the morning. The number of mortgages approved in the UK for house purchases fell 56% year-on-year to 27,968 in May, the British Bankers’ Association, or BBA reported. This is the lowest in 11 years.

The European currency surged in the mid-afternoon against the greenback and erased most of its losses from the day before. The euro was pushed by a rally at around 10 a.m. ET, following a weak consumer confidence report in the U.S. The currencies exchanged at 1.5612 in the mid-morning.

Against the yen, the euro climbed to 167.77. The European currency dropped against the Swiss franc, moving to 1.6172.

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