NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — The dollar rose against the yen Wednesday after a better-than-expected reading on U.S. industrial production in March, with investors looking ahead to a speech from Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen in New York that could yield detailed views on monetary policy.
U.S. data released Wednesday showed construction on new homes in March rose 2.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 946,000. Industrial production in March grew 0.7%, beating forecasts of a 0.5% seen in a MarketWatch poll of economists. February’s industrial-production gain was revised to 1.2% from an initially reported 0.7%.
The dollar USDJPY +0.41% rose to ÂĄ102.31 from ÂĄ101.89 late Tuesday.
Yellen is scheduled to speak at the Economic Club of New York at 12:25 p.m. Eastern and the Fed’s Beige Book is due at 2 p.m. Eastern. Read: Yellen to reintroduce herself to markets
The Fed has embarked on a path to normalize monetary policy, announcing a further cut in its monthly bond purchases to $55 billion at its March meeting. At this rate, the bond purchases could wind down by the end of the year, leading to speculation about when the Federal Reserve could begin to hike interest rates. Yellen said after the March meeting there could be an approximate six-month period between the end of bond purchases and the first rate hike, an idea that has been somewhat discounted by the release of the Fed’s March minutes.
The ICE dollar index DXY +0.00% , which measures the greenback against six rivals, fell to 79.767 from 79.795 late Tuesday. The WSJ Dollar Index XX:BUXX +0.03% , which pits the dollar against a wider basket of rivals, was at 72.97 versus 72.96.
The Australian dollar AUDUSD +0.00% rose to 93.65 from 93.57 U.S. cents late Tuesday.
China’s gross domestic product growth slowed to 7.4% in the first quarter from 7.7% previously, marking the slowest growth in 18 months. The result beat economist expectations. Industrial production in March grew 8.8%, coming in just below estimates. China is Australia’s largest trading partner.
The U.S. dollar USDCAD +0.17% traded at 1.0973 Canadian dollars versus 1.0977 Canadian dollars late Tuesday. The Bank of Canada is scheduled to release a decision on interest rates at 10 a.m. Eastern, with many expecting no change.
The euro EURUSD +0.06% rose to $1.3820 from $1.3812 late Tuesday. European-Union consumer prices in March rose 0.5% from a year earlier, marking the lowest annual rate since November 2009. The tepid inflation rate is the latest to cause concern about deflation in the euro zone, which could prompt further easing from the European Central Bank.
The British pound GBPUSD +0.41% jumped to $1.6801 from $1.6723 late Tuesday. The U.K. unemployment rate was an average of 6.9% between December and February, falling from 7.1% in the prior three months. The unemployment rate is now below the Bank of England’s threshold of 7%, which is one of several indicators used by the bank to determine the path of interest rates. The Bank of England said in August it wouldn’t consider raising interest rates until the unemployment rate fell to 7%.
