MW:Dollar rebounds against major rivals in Asia trade
By V. Phani Kumar, MarketWatch
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) — The dollar appreciated on Tuesday, clawing back some of its recent losses against major currencies, as a broad decline in Asian equities and U.S. stock futures prompted buying in safe-haven assets.
The ICE U.S. dollar index DXY +0.04% , a measure of the greenback’s performance against six major global rivals, climbed to 79.518 from 79.451 in North American trade late Monday.
The euro EURUSD +0.01% , which extended gains against the dollar for a third session Monday, was buying $1.323 versus $1.3239. The euro’s gains the previous day came after an auction to settle credit-default-swap contracts on Greek government debt.
After the recent rally in risk assets, currency pairs were likely to be confined to narrow ranges as some traders closed out some positions, said one analyst.
“Squeezing positions is the name of the [foreign exchange] game as we enter into some range trading,” Societe Generale strategist Sebastien Galy wrote in a note to clients.
With trading in the yen subdued due to a public holiday in Japan, the dollar USDJPY +0.05% rose to ÂĄ83.43 from ÂĄ83.36. The euro EURJPY -0.06% was changing hands for ÂĄ110.38, easing a little from ÂĄ110.44.
The British pound GBPUSD -0.06% was fetching $1.587 against $1.5896 ahead of the U.K.’s consumer-price-inflation data due later in the day.
The dollar’s gains came as most Asian markets suffered modest declines. Read Asia Markets.
U.S. stock-index futures were also trading lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA +0.05% futures slipping 6 points to 13,161.
Varahabhotla Phani Kumar is a reporter in MarketWatch's Hong Kong bureau.
