Dollar Jumps as Investors Retreat

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- The dollar was rallying today, as new data sprinkled doubt about the economic recovery into the minds of investors.

The greenback was up at 1.0759 Swiss francs and 1.0870 Canadian dollars.

The Consumer Confidence Index cast a pall on the markets today, after the Conference Board said the feeling of optimism among consumers fell more than expected in July.

Disappointing earnings reports from retailers Coach(COH Quote) and Office Depot(ODP Quote), along with oil refiner Valero(VLO Quote), among others, helped lead the drooping indexes.

Still, the dollar fell to 94.5550 Japanese yen.

The euro was down to $1.4162, while the British pound was slipping to $1.6422.

And the Australian dollar was up to 82.63 U.S. cents following encouraging comments from the Australian central banker about an economic rebound there.

--Reported by Sung Moss in New York.