Dollar holds steady after strong US data dents hopes of rate-cut

LONDON/SINGAPORE: The dollar held steady on Monday after ticking higher for a fifth straight week on the back of strong inflation data, while the yen traded near the psychologically important 150 level, Reuters reported.

US markets are closed for the Presidents’ Day holiday, with trading volumes likely to be low throughout the day.

The dollar index , which tracks the currency against six peers, was last little changed at 104.23, after rising 0.18 per cent the previous week.

It rose to its highest since mid-November last Tuesday to 104.97 after figures showed US inflation came in stronger than expected in January, causing investors to dial down the number of interest rate cuts they expect from the Federal Reserve this year. But it slipped on Thursday after data showed retail sales fell last month.

The euro was unchanged at $1.0777, after falling to a three-month low of $1.0695 last week. Sterling was up 0.1 per cent at $1.2612. Survey-based purchasing managers’ index data, released on Thursday, will give a sense of the health of the euro zone and UK economies in February.