USD flows: USD firm as yields rise

US data is mixed, with housing starts and building permits both on the strong side, jobless claims data broadly n line and the Philly Fed on the soft side of consensus, although the future index was strong. The USD has generally firmed up through the late European morning/early US trading, with US yields higher and equities trading a little weaker, but the rationale seems mostly to be that yields fell too much yesterday on Middle East optimism. S&P PMIs may now be the focus, with potential for the USD to make some more gains if the US data proves more resilient than the European data this morning.