Asian session: The dollar held an advance versus most of its major peers

01:30 Australia RBA Meeting's Minutes

The dollar held an advance versus most of its major peers before a manufacturing gauge that’s forecast to show improvement for a second month. The New York Fed’s gauge of manufacturing in the state probably rose to 8 in April, from 5.61 the previous month, according to the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

The greenback gained the most in three weeks against the euro yesterday after data showed U.S. retail sales rose in March by the most since September 2012. U.S. retail sales climbed 1.1 percent last month, following a 0.7 percent gain in February that was revised upward, the Commerce Department reported yesterday. The jump exceeded the median projection of a 0.9 percent increase in a Bloomberg survey. Sales excluding receipts at gas stations were the strongest in four years.

The ZEW survey of German investor confidence today may slide to the lowest since August, economists predict. In Germany, the ZEW Center for European Economic Research’s index of investor and analyst expectations, which aims to predict economic developments six months in advance, probably fell to 45 in April, from a seven-month low of 46.6 in March.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen speaks at a financial conference today.

Australia’s dollar fell from near a five-month high after the Reserve Bank’s minutes of this month’s meeting reiterated interest rates are on hold.

EUR / USD: during the Asian session, the pair traded in the range of $ 1.3810-20

GBP / USD: during the Asian session the pair fell to $ 1.6610

USD / JPY: on Asian session the pair traded in the range of Y101.80-00

Germany releases ZEW data at 0900GMT, with the median forecasts coming in at 51.5 for current conditions and 45.0 in the expectations measure. US data for Tuesday starts at 1130GMT with the NFIB Optimism Index, while the weekly ICSC-Goldman Store Sales data is due at 1145GMT. However, the main data starts at 1230GMT, when CPI is expected to rise 0.7% in March. Analysts expect energy prices to fall after rising falling in February, while food prices are seen higher. AAA reported that unadjusted prices were up sharply in mid-March from a month earlier. The core CPI is expected to rise 0.1%. The NY Fed Empire Index is due at the same time and is expected to rise to 10.0 in April after rising to 5.61 in March. At 1255GMT, the weekly Redbook Average is due, while at 1300GMT, the latest Treasury International Capital System data is released. US data continues at 1400GMT with the April NAHB Index, which has continued to show that while demand is building for housing, the market continues to be held back by a shortage of supply.