U.S. dollar declines on soft inflation data

NEW YORK, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. dollar fell against most major currencies on Thursday as the country's soft inflation data continued to weigh on the market.

The U.S. Labor Department said on Wednesday that the so-called core consumer price index increased 0.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis in November from the prior month and 1.7 percent from a year earlier, missing market consensus of a 1.8-percent gain.

Analysts said the soft inflation data dampened investors' hope that the Federal Reserve might raise interest rates in a quicker pace next year.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was down 0.01 percent at 93.418 in late trading on Thursday.

In late New York trading, the euro rose to 1.1799 U.S. dollars from 1.1789 U.S. dollars, and the British pound climbed to 1.3441 U.S. dollars from 1.3368 U.S. dollars. The Australian dollar increased to 0.7676 U.S. dollar from 0.7624 U.S. dollar.

The U.S. dollar bought 112.12 Japanese yen, lower than 112.83 yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar rose to 0.9871 Swiss franc from 0.9865 Swiss franc, and it edged down to 1.2732 Canadian dollars from 1.2844 Canadian dollars. Enditem