The dollar rose to a two-week high against a basket of currencies on Thursday, recovering losses against the yen, on stronger risk appetite across markets and on optimism the United States will successfully push through a tax reform program. The greenback slipped against the safe-haven yen on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said he would recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, a move that imperiled Middle East peace efforts and provoked widespread condemnation.
But as global stock prices edged higher on Thursday after three days of losses, investors bought back the dollar, which gained 0.4 percent on the day at 112.72 yen. Markets are now focused on Friday's US non-farm payrolls report, with investors looking at 200,000 new jobs for November, according to a Reuters poll.
"Tomorrow's jobs report will play a significant factor in keeping the (dollar) rally alive and heightening hopes for an early 2018 rate hike," said Lennon Sweeting, chief market strategist at XE in Toronto. Against a basket of currencies, the dollar hit a two-week high of 93.745.
It was last up 0.1 percent at 93.696. The move higher in dollar/yen came, meanwhile, amid a surge in Tokyo shares, which had slumped the previous day on Middle East concerns. But considering the Nikkei's gains - the index was up almost 1.5 percent - the dollar's rise versus the yen appeared limited. The euro slipped to a two-week low of $1.1776 against a stronger dollar. It was last slightly down on the day at $1.1787.
Bitcoin soared to a record high of $15,000 on the Bitstamp exchange, continuing a surge from less than $1,000 at the beginning of the year.
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