By V. Phani Kumar, MarketWatch
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) — The U.S. dollar edged slightly higher against the euro on Tuesday as worries about the Spanish banking sector kept investors sidelined, reversing some losses made the previous day.
The ICE dollar index DXY -0.11% , which measures the greenback against a basket of six major global currencies, advanced to 82.230 by mid-afternoon in Tokyo, compared with 82.228 in North America late on Monday.
The euro EURUSD +0.09% was changing hands for $1.2534, not much different from $1.2540 in holiday-thinned U.S. trading.
“A renewed sell-off in Spanish debt as banking sector concerns intensify dented any positive impact from weekend polls in Greece showing more support for pro bailout parties. There is little on the data front today aside from German [inflation], leaving markets to continue to ponder on peripheral country woes,” said Mitul Kotecha, head of global foreign exchange strategy at Credit Agricole.
“’Grexit’ fears have by no means been quelled as the reduction in bank deposits continues to show,” Kotecha added. Grexit refers to the feared possibility of Greece’s exit from the euro-zone.
Among other major currency pairs, the dollar USDJPY +0.02% was fetching 79.539 yen from ÂĄ79.455, while the British pound GBPUSD +0.19% was changing hands for $1.5678, little changed from around $1.5679.
Varahabhotla Phani Kumar is a reporter in MarketWatch's Hong Kong bureau.
