The U.S. dollar held steady versus a basket of major currencies on Tuesday, having retreated from the previous day's near-two-week high, giving the euro a chance to get over an unexpected slump in German industrial output.
The dollar index was at 80.233, off a 1-1/2-week peak at 80.359 set on Monday. Still, it managed to hold on to most of the gains made in the wake of solid payrolls data on Thursday.
The greenback's lackluster performance came as U.S. Treasury yields slipped from recent highs after Wall Street turned cautious ahead of the second-quarter earnings season starting this week. That helped support the euro, which held steady at $1.3605, having bounced from a low of $1.3576 on Monday when an unexpectedly big fall in German industrial output unsettled the common European currency.
The U.S. will sell $27 billion of three-year Treasuries today as investors seek clues as to the timing of interest-rate increases in the world’s largest economy. Data on American consumer credit is also due out today, along with reports on German trade and U.K. industrial output, while the Federal Reserve will publish minutes of its June meeting tomorrow. Japan posted a larger-than-estimated current-account surplus for May today, with China to issue inflation reports tomorrow.
Commodities
Gold fell as investors weighed the outlook for U.S. interest-rate policy, while nickel extended declines to a third day and corn futures rose from the lowest since 2010. Asia’s benchmark stock index was little changed near a six-year high and Malaysia’s ringgit strengthened.
Gold fell 0.2 percent by 1:36 p.m. in Tokyo. Nickel slipped 0.4 percent as some investors deemed supply sufficient for short-term needs. Corn rose 0.2 percent. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost less than 0.1 percent while Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures fell 0.1 percent. Jakarta’s main stock gauge rallied before presidential elections tomorrow. The ringgit climbed 0.3 percent amid speculation the central bank will raise rates this week.