1st LD Writethru: U.S. dollar falls after sharp gain

The U.S. dollar dropped against most major currencies on Monday after it soared to a four-month high in the previous session.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, touched its highest level in nearly four months of 98. 334 on Friday as the strong U.S. jobs data bolstered expectation for an interest-rate hike as early as September.

The index was down 0.38 percent at 97.194 in late trading on Monday due to some dovish remarks by Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer.

Fischer said on Monday that low U.S. inflation, while largely restrained by temporary factors, remains a concern when the Fed was considering a rate-hike.

Analysts said Fischer's words cast some doubt on whether the central bank would raise rates next month.

Meanwhile, investors were awaiting the closely-watched U.S. retail sales data released later this week to get a more comprehensive view of the country's economic recovery.

In late New York trading, the euro rose to 1.0921 dollars from 1.0972 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound climbed to 1.5601 dollars from 1.5492 U.S. dollars in the previous session. The Australian dollar increased to 0.7410 dollar from 0. 7407 dollar.

The U.S. dollar bought 124.61 Japanese yen, higher than 124.17 yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar was flat at 0.9836 Swiss franc, and it inched down to 1.3001 Canadian dollars from 1. 3134 Canadian dollars. Endite