Investing.com - Investing.com - The dollar was mixed against the other major currencies on Friday, as concerns over events in Crimea continued to dampen market sentiment, while markets eyed the release of U.S. economic reports later in the day. The dollar was higher against the euro, with EUR/USD down 0.19% to 1.3887. Official data showed that euro zone consumer price inflation rose 0.3% last month, below expectations for a 0.4% increase, after a 1.1% decline in January. Year-on-year, consumer price inflation rose 0.7% in February, compared to expectations for a 0.8% increase, after a 0.8% gain in January. Core consumer price inflation, which excludes food, energy, alcohol, and tobacco, rose 0.5% in February, after a 1.7% fall the previous month. Meanwhile, market sentiment remained under pressure after over 90% of Crimean voters on Sunday chose to break with Ukraine and join Russia. U.S. President Barack Obama said Washington rejected the results of the referendum and warned that the U.S. was ready to impose sanctions on Moscow. The pound was lower against the dollar, with GBP/USD slipping 0.10% to 1.6629. The dollar was higher against the yen and te Swiss franc, with USD/JPY up 0.47% to 101.82 and with USD/CHF rising 0.36% to 0.8753. The greenback was lower against the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars, with AUD/USD gaining 0.51% to 0.9078, NZD/USD climbing 0.50% to 0.8577 and USD/CAD declining 0.45% to 1.1055. Earlier Monday, official data showed that new motor vehicles in Australia rose 0.1% last month, after a 4% drop in January, whose figure was revised down from a previously estimated 3.5% decline. The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.20% to 79.68. Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish data on manufacturing activity in the Empire State, as well as reports on industrial production and long term securities transactions.

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