The dollar held to new gains against the euro in European trading, ahead of the release of the U.S. Federal Reserve's monthly policy statement at 1800 GMT.
The euro was trading around $1.374 against the dollar as trading got under way in Europe Wednesday, off from its recent high of $1.3833 against the buck.
The U.S. central bank is widely expected to hold off slowing the pace of its asset purchases on the back of fiscal uncertainty and a recent slowdown in the country's economic recovery.
"The euro underperformance seems to reflect defensive investor positioning ahead of the release of the Fed rather than a shift in euro sentiment," said Valentin Marinov, a currencies strategist at Citigroup.
The single currency found short-term support against the dollar after the release of German unemployment data at 0900 GMT.
German jobless claims rose for the third month in October, up 2,000 from September when taking account of seasonal swings. Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast no change.
The euro hit a day's high of $1.3768 after the release, before settling back around $1.376.
Also in focus Wednesday, U.S. consumer price inflation data is due at 1230 GMT, just after the ADL employment report at 1215 GMT.
CPI is expected to ease to 1.2% year-on-year in September from 1.5% a month earlier, mainly due to base effects, said Rabobank. Core inflation is expected to remain unchanged at 1.8%.
Labor market "conditions have likely weakened further as a result of the government shutdown and debt ceiling uncertainty," said Lee Hardman, a currencies strategist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi.
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