Dollar remains firm in Asian trading
The US dollar held near an 18-month high at the start of Asian trading on Tuesday. Renewed attacks on energy infrastructure in the Middle East and Ukraine increased demand for defensive currency positions.
The dollar index, which measures the currency against six major peers, stood at 102.56. It had risen 0.3% on Monday.
Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone Group, said higher relative interest rates, stronger US growth and defensive demand were supporting the dollar.
Energy prices and bond yields support the currency
Rising energy costs and higher US Treasury yields have helped the dollar outperform several major currencies.
The euro was steady at $1.1159, while the British pound traded at $1.3209. The euro remained under pressure from turmoil in French bond markets, which widened the spread between French and German government bonds.
The dollar weakened 0.1% against the yen to 158.435 yen. Japanese wholesale prices rose 6.8% in the year to September, below the market forecast of 7.6%.
Other currencies show mixed movements
The offshore Chinese yuan traded at 6.6950 per dollar, near its strongest level in four years.
The Australian dollar slipped 0.1% to $0.6956. Minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia’s September meeting showed that policymakers unanimously supported a fourth interest-rate increase this year. The bank said inflation could prove more persistent than expected.
The New Zealand dollar fell 0.1% to $0.5582, near an 18-month low.
Bitcoin declined 2% to $81,365.56, while ether dropped 3.8% to $2,422.06. Brent crude futures fell 0.9% to $105.74 a barrel, partially reversing the previous session’s gains.
