By: Barbara Zigah
In Asian trading today, the U.S. Dollar edged up versus the Japanese Yen following remarks made by an official of the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank which investors took as a less dovish stance than that currently held by the institution. Charles Plosser, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President, stressed that the economy could not wait for “acceptable” levels of unemployment to be reached before key interest rates rise. Those comments gave momentum to hedge fund operators who bought the U.S. currency, driving the price up to 91.07 Yen from yesterday’s New York price of 90.95 Yen. The U.S. Dollar Index slipped, however, trading at 76.991 .DXY. The single currency Euro held steady at $1.4887, down slightly from overnight trading of $1.4489.
Despite the hawkish tone, the majority of investors and analysts don’t believe that interest rates will increase any time in the near future because the American economy has not yet recovered enough, as evidenced by last week’s report of an unexpected rise in unemployment during December.
Today, market players will scrutinize the U.S. Treasury’s auction of 10-year Notes to be held at 6:00 p.m. (GMT). A decrease in demand may result in a decline in the greenback, suggesting that foreign investors’ appetite for U.S.-backed instruments is diminishing.
Despite Hawkish Comments by Fed Official, U.S. Dollar Remains Mixed
After working on Wall Street, Barb began her second career as a freelance writer at Daily Forex, where the CEO recognized fresh, untapped potential and was willing to give her a try. She’s never looked back. Since then, she’s worked steadily as a freelance writer and editor in the financial services and Forex-related industry.