The dollar strengthened against the yen, but touched a new seven-month low against the euro early Wednesday after U.S. durable goods orders data came in far better than expected and as investors cautiously awaited new home sales data. Orders for new U.S.-made durable goods increased 6.1% in March, led by strong demand for airplanes, machinery and electronics, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. The increase in new orders was the largest since May 2005 and far exceeded the 2.1% gain expected by economists surveyed by MarketWatch. The number "offsets some of the major bearish momentum that we have seen over the past weekend," said Kathy Lien, chief strategist at Forex Capital Markets. "This could also suggest that the GDP figures that we expect on Friday will come in strong." In early New York trading, the dollar rose 0.1% to 114.95 yen. The euro briefly eased after the durable goods data, before strengthening to a new high of $1.2442. It was last trading at $1.2426, up 0.01%. The British pound was down 0.2% to $1.785. The dollar was up 0.2% at 1.2701 Swiss francs. The Commerce Department will report on March sales of new homes at 10.00 a.m. Eastern. Economists expect a slight increase to 1.1 million annualized from 1.08 million in February. New home sales data are viewed by many as a much better gauge of current housing activity than existing home number. The dollar lost a full cent against the euro last month following the release of the February report on new home sales, which tumbled 10.5% to 1.08 million.