U.S. dollar declines after Fed statement

The U.S. dollar decreased against other major currencies on Wednesday as investors were digesting the latest Federal Reserve statement.

In the statement released Wednesday after Fed's two-day policy meeting, the U.S. central bank decided to keep its federal funds rate unchanged amid recent weak economic data and tepid inflation.

"The Committee judges that the case for an increase in the federal funds rate has strengthened but decided, for the time being, to wait for further evidence of continued progress toward its objectives," said the statement.

The Fed also said that near-term risks to the U.S. economic outlook "appear roughly balanced," a sign that the central bank could raise rates by the end of this year.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major currencies, was down 0.14 percent at 95.881 in late trading.

In late New York trading, the euro rose to 1.1173 dollars from 1.1161 dollars of the previous session, and the British pound rose to 1.2998 dollars from 1.2975 dollars. The Australian dollar climbed to 0.7600 dollars from 0.7550 dollars.

The dollar bought 100.59 Japanese yen, lower than 101.83 yen in the previous session. The dollar dipped to 0.9759 Swiss francs from 0.9790 Swiss francs, and it inched down to 1.3159 Canadian dollars from 1.3213 Canadian dollars. Endit