The US dollar on Friday lost some ground against major currencies, but hit a four-month peak on continued optimism about the US economy and rose to a nine-month high against the Japanese yen.
Against a basket of six major currencies, the greenback stood at 92.72, closing out the week with a gain of 0.87 percent.
It was shrugging off data showing that US consumer spending fell recently.
Photo: Reuters
The US dollar increased against the Japanese yen to ¥109.44.
“The dollar has gotten a second wind,” said Minh Trang, senior foreign exchange trader at Silicon Valley Bank, adding that the upward trend in the greenback “will come in spurts as bull markets do.”
Yields on US Treasuries rose, but held below one-year highs reached last week.
US jobless claims fell to a one-year low last week and US President Joe Biden said that he would double his vaccination plan after reaching his previous goal of 100 million shots 42 days ahead of schedule, both of which support optimism about the US dollar.
However, the New Taiwan dollar rose against the US dollar, gaining NT$0.008 to close at NT$28.602, but declined 0.49 percent from NT$28.463 a week earlier.
The euro was up 0.28 percent to US$1.1797, having managed to claw back ground from Thursday’s four-month low, although the common currency is still bruised by doubts over the slow pace of vaccinations and rising infections.
In a boost for the euro, business morale in the euro zone’s biggest economy Germany hit its highest level in almost two years in March as rising demand for manufactured goods kept factories humming.
“We left 2020 with the validation of the consensus view the dollar would weaken,” Indosuez Wealth Management chief investment officer Vincent Manuel said. “We have woken up in 2021 facing the reality that the US is growing much quicker than Europe ... so we have a massive divergence.”
Additional reporting by Reuters and CNA, with staff writer
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