By Lisa Twaronite, MarketWatch
TOKYO (MarketWatch) — The dollar traded higher against most major rivals Wednesday, edging up against the euro ahead of a much-awaited vote on Greece’s austerity plan, passage of which is meant to put the debt-plagued nation on a path to fiscal health.
The euro EURUSD +0.01% slipped to $1.4350, down from $1.4366 in late North American trading on Tuesday. See real-time currency quotes and tools.
The dollar index DXY +0.02% , which measures the performance of the U.S. unit against a basket of six other currencies, edged up to 75.081 from 75.059 late Tuesday.
Greece’s parliament will vote on an austerity plan needed to secure a €12 billion ($17 billion) round of bailout funds, with lawmakers expected to vote on the plan later Wednesday. If it passes, a vote on implementation measures would follow on Thursday. Read more on Greece’s austerity vote.
“We expect both today’s and tomorrow’s votes to get through parliament, though it will not be easy,” said Sue Trinh, senior currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets.
“The margin may be tight, but we think the threat of default will ultimately swing the vote in favor of the measures. If realized, it will be a near-term positive for [euro] and risk,” she said in a note to clients.
The European unit also got some support Tuesday from comments by European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet, who reportedly told a news conference in Amsterdam that he was in a “strong vigilance mode” on inflation.
The phrase “strong vigilance” is viewed as a signal the ECB is likely to hike its key lending rate when it meets July 7. Read more on Trichet's comments and euro.
The Australian dollar AUDUSD +0.04% fell to $1.0529 from $1.0546.
The British pound GBPUSD +0.02% rose to $1.5987 from $1.5945.
Against the yen, the dollar USDJPY -0.08% bought ¥81.02, compared with ¥81.14 late Tuesday.
Lisa Twaronite is MarketWatch's Tokyo bureau chief.
