The dollar held steady on Friday near a one-week high against major currencies as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium for clues about his outlook on monetary policy.
The euro and British pound slipped toward their lowest levels in a week against the dollar, trading at $1.1652 and $1.3597, respectively, although both currencies were on track to post monthly gains for a second consecutive month.
The yen was little changed at 159.34 per dollar, after giving up some of its gains following official intervention to support the currency. It remained on track for a 1.3% monthly gain.
The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six major currencies, was little changed at 99.13 in early Asian trading.
The index was up 0.3% this week, but remained on track for a second consecutive monthly decline of 0.7%, after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the department would increase purchases of long-term bonds. This fueled concerns that efforts to curb borrowing costs could weaken the dollar.
Investors are now awaiting Warsh’s first speech at Jackson Hole for indications of how he intends to approach monetary policy and efforts to contain inflation.
In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin rose 0.5% to $80,620.33, and was heading for a gain of nearly 30% in August, which would be its strongest monthly increase since late 2024.
The Australian dollar rose about 0.1% to $0.72, its highest level in three months, amid growing expectations of an interest-rate hike. The New Zealand dollar gained 0.2% to $0.5960.
Reuters
