💎 Fed’s first rate cut since 2020 set to trigger market. Find undervalued gems with Fair ValueSee Undervalued Stocks

FOREX-Dollar steadies on March rate hike prospects, euro slips

Published 07/03/2017, 12:08 pm
Updated 07/03/2017, 12:10 pm
© Reuters. FOREX-Dollar steadies on March rate hike prospects, euro slips
EUR/USD
-
USD/JPY
-
DXY
-

* France's Fillon wins party backing for presidential election

* Investors still await details of Trump's policies

By Yuzuha Oka

TOKYO, March 7 (Reuters) - The dollar held onto gains on Tuesday, lifted by the Federal Reserve's near-certain March rate increase, while political uncertainties over the French presidential election weighed on the euro.

The dollar edged up against a basket of six major peers to 101.68 .DXY , after retreating to a one-week low of 101.22 on Monday.

The dollar was supported by expectations the Fed was almost certain to raise interest rates at its meeting next week. Fed Chair Janet Yellen said on Friday raising interest rates this month would be appropriate, if jobs and inflation data hold up. some analysts say the dollar would not see a further rally unless U.S. President Donald Trump announces detailed economic policies.

"The dollar is not likely to gain further against the yen, with an expected range around 111 to 115 yen during March," said Masashi Murata, senior currency strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman.

"Investors are seeing difficulty for Trump to immediately legislate tax cuts and infrastructure spending. But they can't sell either because the March rate hike is highly likely," added Murata.

The euro last stood at $1.0579 EUR= , dropping from a two-week high of $1.064 touched on Monday.

Scandal-hit Francois Fillon won his party's backing on Monday, hours after a former French prime minister Alain Juppe ruled out his election bid. poll on Friday had shown that if Juppe replaced Fillon as the center-right candidate, he would likely win the election's first round, with centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron coming second - a scenario that would knock far-right leader Marine Le Pen out of the race. leaders swung behind Fillon despite allegations that he had misused public funds. Challengers failed to convince him to step down voluntarily and could not agree on an alternative candidate.

The dollar edged up 0.1 percent against the yen to 113.94 yen JPY= after falling to a one-week low of 113.53 yen on Monday as geopolitical uncertainties prompted investors to buy the perceived safe-haven Japanese currency.

News that North Korea had fired four ballistic missiles, as well as Trump's unverified claims that his predecessor, Barack Obama, had wiretapped his correspondence from Trump Tower, spurred yen-buying on Monday.

(Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.