Investing.com - The U.S. dollar traded broadly higher against its major rivals during Thursday’s Asian session after the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s July monetary policy meeting showed support among Fed members for tapering the central bank’s easing efforts at some point this year.
In Asian trading Thursday, EUR/USD fell 0.13% to 1.3338. While the Fed minutes were somewhat murky, one thing is clear: There is broad support for tapering of the central bank’s USD85 billion-per-month bond-buying regime at some point this year.
"A few members emphasized the importance of being patient and evaluating additional information on the economy before deciding on any changes to the pace of asset purchases," according to the Fed minutes.
USD/JPY rose 0.20% to 97.89 while GBP/USD slid 0.28% to 1.5618. Sterling trader higher Wedn after a private sector report showed that U.K. manufacturing orders rose to a two-year high in August, adding to optimism over the economic recovery.
The Confederation of British Industry said its total orders index rose to zero from minus 12 in July. That beat expectations for a reading of minus 8 and was the highest since August 2011.
A separate report showed that the U.K.'s public sector posted a deficit of GBP1.6 billion in July. It was the first deficit for the month of July, which usually shows a surplus due to tax payments, since 2010.
"Almost all participants confirmed that they were broadly comfortable" with the committee reducing "the pace of its securities purchases later this year," the minutes indicated.
Most market participants expect tapering to arrive as soon as September, though some see the Fed pushing it off until December. The central bank added it expects the U.S. economy to continue improving in the second half of this year.
USD/CHF rose 0.14% to 0.9237 while USD/CAD advanced 0.19% to 1.0492.
AUD/USD dropped 0.26% to 0.8948 as the Aussie is seen as one of the most vulnerable currencies to Fed tapering. NZD/USD fell 0.19% to 0.7830. The U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.17% to 81.49.
