Investing.com - The dollar edged lower against a basket of major currencies on Monday as investors awaited congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen later in the week.
EUR/USD rose 0.18% to 1.3631 from 1.3606 late Friday.
Traders were awaiting fresh indications on the future direction of monetary policy after last week’s minutes of the Fed’s June meeting revealed little new information on when rates could start to increase.
The euro’s gains were held in check ahead of testimony on monetary policy by European Central Bank head Mario Draghi later in the day. Draghi was set to speak at a hearing before the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee of the European Parliament later Monday.
The pound also pushed higher, with GBP/USD rising 0.15% to 1.7131.
Elsewhere, the dollar was slightly higher against the yen, with USD/JPY easing up 0.11% to 101.46. The euro also gained ground against the Japanese currency, with EUR/JPY up 0.29% to 138.28, recovering from last Thursday’s five month lows of 137.48.
The New Zealand dollar remained supported near three year highs, with NZD/USD at 0.8812, while AUD/USD was steady at 0.9393.
The Canadian dollar was at almost three-week lows, with USD/CAD edging up 0.08% to 1.0740. The loonie, as the Canadian dollar is also known, remained under pressure after unexpectedly weak domestic employment data last week indicated that the country’s central bank will keep rates on hold for longer.
The US Dollar Index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, eased 0.10% to 80.16.