The dollar rose to touch a one-month high against a basket of currencies on Tuesday, buoyed by optimism that US lawmakers could soon reach a deal to avert a US debt default. The dollar index rose 0.4 percent to 80.598, its highest since September 18. US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said he and his Republican counterpart Mitch McConnell had made "tremendous progress" in talks, and suggested a deal could come as early as Tuesday.
The comments raised expectations of a deal before a Thursday deadline to raise the US debt ceiling. A source said the plan would end a partial government shutdown and cover the country's borrowing needs at least through mid-February. The dollar touched a two-week high against the yen of 98.71 yen, with gains at the session peak marking the 50 percent Fibonacci retracement of the move from the September 11 peak to the October 8 low.
But those gains eroded as the New York session opened with the dollar last down 0.1 percent at 98.44 yen. The dollar rose to a one-month high against the safe-haven Swiss franc of 0.9177 francs. The dollar was last up 0.6 percent at 0.9158 francs.
The dollar also rose against the euro, which failed to benefit from a survey showing a better than expected German analyst and investor sentiment. The euro fell 0.5 percent on the day to hit a two-week low of $1.3478. The Australian dollar was last up 0.4 percent at US $0.9522.
Comments
Comments are closed.