By Michael Kitchen, MarketWatch
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) — The dollar resumed a path higher Tuesday during Asian trading hours, on track to extend its recent string of gains after taking a leg down in North American trade Monday.
The ICE dollar index DXY +0.10% , which tracks the U.S. currencies against a basket of six other units, edged up to 81.071, compared to 80.970 late Monday, when the index broke its 14-day winning run, a multi-decade record. Read more on Monday’s foreign-exchange action.
The euro EURUSD -0.12% headed the other way, slipping to $1.2783 from $1.2811 on Monday, with investors looking ahead to a European Union leaders’ meeting Wednesday, as the bloc seeks to address Greece’s possible exit from the euro zone.
The Japanese yen was little changed one day ahead of the Bank of Japan’s policy decision, though many analysts saw the central bank as unlikely to provide further easing this week.
The dollar USDJPY +0.20% edged up to ÂĄ79.38 from a level late Monday of ÂĄ79.30, while the euro EURJPY +0.06% bought ÂĄ101.50, a 0.1% daily loss for the European currency, according to FactSet data.
The yen’s moves came against the background of a rally for stocks, with the Nikkei Stock Average adding 1% in late afternoon trade.
The British pound GBPUSD -0.01% also saw little change, inching down to $1.5811 from Monday’s $1.5829.
Michael Kitchen is Asia editor for MarketWatch and is based in Los Angeles.
