U.S. dollar slumps on profit-taking

The U.S. dollar declined against other major peers on Wednesday after investors took profits from recent gains.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, had been up nearly 1.4 percent to two-week highs earlier this week, after upbeat U.S. employment report spurred market expectation for an interest-rate hike by year-end.

U.S. total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 255,000 in July, beating economists' estimates of 180,000, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.9 percent, the Labor Department reported Friday.

Average hourly earnings for all employees increased 8 cents to 25.69 U.S. dollars, following a 2-cent increase in June, according to the report.

Analysts said the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates later this year given the robust labor market.

The U.S. central bank left the benchmark interest rate unchanged in its July meeting, and said that near-term risks to the economic outlook have diminished.

With no major economic reports coming out, investors were awaiting the closely-watched speech by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen at the end of this month.

In late New York trading, the euro rose to 1.1175 dollars from 1.1111 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound climbed to 1.3012 dollars from 1.2996 U.S. dollars in the previous session. The Australian dollar inched up to 0.7709 dollar from 0.7664 dollar.

The U.S. dollar bought 101.28 Japanese yen, lower than 101.81 yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar fell to 0.9754 Swiss franc from 0.9819 Swiss franc, and it slipped to 1.3061 Canadian dollars from 1.3143 Canadian dollars. Enditem