US dollar hovers above 5-month low

London

THE dollar hovered above a five-month low versus major peers on Thursday as investors looked to US inflation data and a European Central Bank meeting later in the day, while an index of volatility among major currencies dropped to new lows.

Investors have adopted a wait-and-see attitude all week, sucking volatility from the market and leaving major currencies mostly range-bound.

The dollar index has fluctuated narrowly around the psychologically important 90 level, and was last at 90.206 - not too far from last month's low of 89.533, a level not seen since early January.

The euro rose to a one-week high at US$1.2218 on Wednesday only to finish little changed, and was mostly flat at US$1.2169 in European trade.

The yen traded at 109.46 per dollar, also little changed from Wednesday and near the middle of the 109.19-110.325 range of the past two weeks.

Deutsche Bank's Currency Volatility Index, which hit its lowest level since February 2020 earlier this week, sank even further to a new low.

The US Labor Department's consumer prices data has been much anticipated after last month's report showed consumer prices increased by the most in nearly 12 years in April.That has stoked bets that higher prices could last longer than some anticipate, potentially calling into question the Fed's insistence that current inflation pressures are transitory and monetary stimulus should stay in place for some time yet.

Economists polled by Reuters estimated the CPI advanced 0.4 per cent in May. "Ahead of the print, our economists are expecting an above-consensus reading for both the headline and the core inflation print," said Valentin Marinov, head of G10 FX research at Credit Agricole.

If realised, that could trigger intraday volatility and a reversal of some of the latest drop in US Treasury yields, Mr Marinov said. "The dollar could benefit as a result across the board, especially if the print is seen as potentially resulting in a more hawkish or less dovish outcome of the June FOMC (Federal Open Markets Committee) meeting next week."

While the greenback has kept to tight ranges in the run-up to the CPI report, benchmark 10-year Treasury yields - which helped drive the dollar index to a multi-year high earlier this year - have taken a sizeable step lower in the past week and were at 1.5025 per cent in Europe from as high as 1.6350 per cent on Friday. REUTERS