U.S. dollar increases on rate-hike expectations
Xinhua, November 12, 2016 Adjust font size:
The U.S. dollar climbed against most major currencies on Friday as upbeat economic data from the country as well as President-elected Donald Trump's potential economic policies boosted market expectation for further interest-rate increases.
On the economic front, U.S. consumer sentiment rebounded in early November from a two-year low level recorded in October as consumers raised their economic expectation.
The preliminary reading of the consumer sentiment for November rose to 91.6 from 87.2 in October, said the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment on Friday.
Meanwhile, investors were also accessing the U.S. economic prospects under a Trump administration.
Analysts said that the rising possibility of tax cuts and a generally pro-growth set of policies from Trump, aided and abetted by the Republican clean sweep of congress, raised market speculation for a revival in inflation as well as more rate-hikes in the future.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against six major peers, was up 0.29 percent to 99.071 in late trading, the highest in nine months.
In late New York trading, the euro fell to 1.0844 dollars from 1.0890 dollars, and the British pound rose to 1.2597 dollars from 1.2566 dollars. The Australian dollar declined to 0.7543 dollars from 0.7620 dollars.
The dollar bought 106.77 Japanese yen, lower than 106.82 yen in the previous session. The dollar inched up to 0.9889 Swiss francs from 0.9875 Swiss francs, and it climbed to 1.3537 Canadian dollars from 1.3463 Canadian dollars. Enditem