By Sarah Turner, MarketWatch
FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) — The dollar eked out small gains versus most major rivals Tuesday, as a “risk rally” that lifted equities and other markets last week remained on pause.
The ICE dollar index DXY +0.24% , which tracks the U.S. unit against six rivals, traded at 79.100, up slightly from 79.045 in late trading on Monday.
The WSJ dollar index XX:BUXX +0.20% , which measures the dollar against a wider basket, rose to 69.26 from Monday’s close of 69.11.
“Risk continued to trade on a soft note overnight with [the Australian dollar] leading the way in the foreign-exchange space,” noted Chris Walker, strategist at UBS.
The Australian dollar is one of the most risk-sensitive currencies, rising as risk appetite jumps and falling as it declines.
The Australian dollar AUDUSD -0.45% fell to $1.0422, down from $1.0459 recorded late the previous day. The Reserve Bank of Australia on Tuesday released the minutes from its latest interest-rate meeting and Michael Turner, strategist at RBC Capital Markets, described the minutes as “dovish.” He said they “signalled heightened concern over China, the high exchange rate and lower commodity prices.”
The dollar remains underpinned by the continued territorial dispute between China and Japan. The dollar, which tumbled last week as the Federal Reserve’s decision to embark on a third round of quantitative easing sparked a global risk rally, tends to benefit when investors seek safe havens.
Against the Japanese yen USDJPY -0.08% , the dollar traded at ¥78.62, from ¥78.74.
The euro EURUSD -0.47% fell to $1.3047, from $1.3094 the previous session. The shared currency saw little lasting impact from a rise in the ZEW expectations index for German investors. Read: German ZEW Sept. investor expectations rise .
The British pound GBPUSD -.00% traded at $1.6239, little changed from $1.6238 in late trading on Monday.
Sarah Turner is MarketWatch's bureau chief in Sydney.
