Dollar slips in New York

The US dollar dipped from six-year highs against the yen on Thursday, and the dollar index fell slightly but remained on track to post its ninth consecutive week of gains. The greenback was slightly weaker as Treasuries yields fell after President Barack Obama authorised airstrikes for the first time in Syria and more strikes in Iraq.
Losses were mild however, with the dollar looking to end the week stronger as investors continued adjust to the possibility that the Federal Reserve will adopt a more hawkish tone and indicate that it may act sooner to raise interest rates. Trading became more volatile this week, before the Fed is due to hold its highly anticipated September meeting next week.
"This week is the beginning of markets being concerned more broadly that however much the Fed would like its normalisation to be smooth and serene, that it may end up being more harsh on asset markets than had previously been anticipated," said Steven Englander, global head of G10 foreign exchange strategy at CitiFX in New York. Recent comments by Fed policymakers including Chair Janet Yellen have indicated that rate increases will be data dependent, and some fear that further declines in unemployment may pressure the US central bank to tighten sooner.
US dollar strength has also been aided by a worsening picture in Europe and Japan. The euro fell to 14-month lows against the greenback after the European Central Bank cut rates to new lows and launched an asset purchase program to ward off deflation. The Bank of Japan is also expected to launch new stimulus to address low inflation and a flagging economy.
"A lot of currencies are having bad runs," said Englander. The dollar was last at 106.94 yen after earlier rising to 107.19, the highest since September 2008. The euro rose to $1.2932, up from a 14-month low of $1.2858 on Tuesday. The dollar index fell 0.06 percent to 84.201, but was still on track for a ninth consecutive week of gains - its longest winning streak since 1997.
Sterling got some respite from a poll that helped calm nerves over Scotland's vote on independence in a week's time. A poll late on Wednesday showed 53 percent of Scots intended to vote against a split from the UK, in contrast to a YouGov poll over the weekend showing 51 percent in favour. Sterling rose 0.15 percent to $1.6236 after gaining 0.7 percent on Wednesday after the latest poll was published. The dollar hit a seven-month peak against its New Zealand counterpart, which slid after the country's central bank said the kiwi's current level was "unjustified and unsustainable". The kiwi sank as low as $0.8162, before rising back to $0.8180.