LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The U.S. dollar gained ground on the Japanese yen but was little changed versus the euro on Thursday, consolidating gains made the previous day following the Federal Reserve's decision to take no additional steps to aid credit markets. With little in the way of major economic data on tap Thursday, strategists said risk appetite would likely be a major driver in the markets. The dollar index (DXY 80.70, +0.14, +0.18%) , a measure of the greenback against a trade-weighted basket of major currencies, traded at 80.652, up from 80.530 in North American trade late Wednesday afternoon. The index traded near 80.180 Wednesday ahead of the Fed announcement. The statement issued by the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee said deflation no longer remains a major threat and that inflation was likely to remain subdued. The FOMC announced no changes to its current plans to buy Treasurys and mortgage-backed assets, nor did it offer any indication it was eager to begin boosting its official interest rate from near zero. Read about the Fed decision. The statement "did not reveal any significant changes, but the statement language was carefully adjusted in various areas and should be modestly positive for the U.S. dollar," said Tomoko Fujii, a rates and currency strategist at Bank of America Securities-Merrill Lynch Japan. The statement appeared to disappoint bond bulls looking for additional purchases, sending Treasury prices lower and yields higher, wrote strategists at Standard Chartered Bank. "The fact that U.S. yields rose because of the Fed's less dovish statement on inflation can also go some way in explaining U.S. dollar strength. But, in our view, the FOMC statement told markets little they did not already know," they said, in a research note. Economists at UniCredit MIB in Milan said the dollar rise was overdone, leaving room for potentially "sharp" position adjustments amid a light economic calendar Thursday. Major currency pairs "should stay on a roller-coaster ride for now, still driven by swings in risk aversion and signals coming from money markets," they said. The dollar gained ground versus the Japanese currency. A dollar bought 96.40 yen, up from 95.63 yen in late North American trading on Wednesday. The British pound fell 0.9% to $1.6265 versus the dollar. The euro had gained ground versus the dollar but slipped then slipped back toward unchanged. The euro traded at $1.3924, little changed from the level seen late Wednesday. The euro extended gains versus the Swiss franc, a day after the Swiss central bank appeared to have intervened to buy euros and dollars versus its own currency. The Swiss National Bank has vowed to halt the appreciation of the franc. See full story. The euro traded at 1.5326 francs, up from around 1.5290 francs late Wednesday. The U.S. dollar was up 0.2% against the Swiss currency to trade at 1.1004 francs. The dollar's rise versus the franc Wednesday on the rumored intervention was a "clear drag" on the euro/U.S. dollar currency pair, the UniCredit analysts said, "freezing" the euro's early spike above $1.41 and helping to drag it below $1.39 in the selloff following the Fed announcement. With the Swiss franc continuing to work as a "pivot" in the market, they said they would buy the euro versus the dollar as long as the greenback remains below 1.10 Swiss francs. U.S. economic data on tap for Thursday include weekly jobless claims and a final estimate of first-quarter gross domestic product.

Source