Investing.com - The dollar remained sharply higher against the yen on Thursday after the Bank of Japan stepped up easing measures and was also higher against the euro and the pound following rate decisions by the European Central Bank and the Bank of England.
During European afternoon trade, the dollar posed steep gains against the yen, with USD/JPY advancing 2.62% to 95.47.
The yen fell across the board after the BoJ, under the leadership of newly appointed Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, said it plans to double its asset purchase program over the next two years and extend the maturities of the bonds it purchases.
The dollar pared gains against the euro, with EUR/USD falling 0.30% to 1.2806, up from session lows of 1.2784.
The ECB left interest rates on hold at 0.75% in a widely expected decision on Thursday.
Sentiment on the single currency remained fragile amid concerns that ECB chief Mario Draghi could indicate that the bank is considering a rate cut at the banks’ post policy meeting press conference, as the economic outlook for the region deteriorated.
The dollar was almost unchanged against the pound, with GBP/USD dipping 0.01% to 1.5130.
Sterling came off session lows after the Bank of England left interest rates on hold at 0.5% and the size of its asset purchase program unchanged at GBP375 million in a widely expected decision.
The decision came on the heels of data showing that the U.K. service sector expanded at the fastest pace in seven months in March, fuelling hopes that the economy will narrowly avoid a triple-dip recession.
The dollar was higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF rising 0.29% to 0.9480.
The greenback was higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD edging up 0.03% to 1.0149, AUD/USD dropping 0.31% to 1.0428 and NZD/USD losing 0.27% to trade at 0.8394.
The Australian dollar was trading close to two-month highs earlier after official data showed that Australian retail sales rose 1.3% in February, far exceeding forecasts for as 0.3% gain, after rising by 1.2% in January.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.54% to 83.32.
The U.S. was to release government data on initial jobless claims later Thursday and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was to speak.
During European afternoon trade, the dollar posed steep gains against the yen, with USD/JPY advancing 2.62% to 95.47.
The yen fell across the board after the BoJ, under the leadership of newly appointed Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, said it plans to double its asset purchase program over the next two years and extend the maturities of the bonds it purchases.
The dollar pared gains against the euro, with EUR/USD falling 0.30% to 1.2806, up from session lows of 1.2784.
The ECB left interest rates on hold at 0.75% in a widely expected decision on Thursday.
Sentiment on the single currency remained fragile amid concerns that ECB chief Mario Draghi could indicate that the bank is considering a rate cut at the banks’ post policy meeting press conference, as the economic outlook for the region deteriorated.
The dollar was almost unchanged against the pound, with GBP/USD dipping 0.01% to 1.5130.
Sterling came off session lows after the Bank of England left interest rates on hold at 0.5% and the size of its asset purchase program unchanged at GBP375 million in a widely expected decision.
The decision came on the heels of data showing that the U.K. service sector expanded at the fastest pace in seven months in March, fuelling hopes that the economy will narrowly avoid a triple-dip recession.
The dollar was higher against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF rising 0.29% to 0.9480.
The greenback was higher against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD edging up 0.03% to 1.0149, AUD/USD dropping 0.31% to 1.0428 and NZD/USD losing 0.27% to trade at 0.8394.
The Australian dollar was trading close to two-month highs earlier after official data showed that Australian retail sales rose 1.3% in February, far exceeding forecasts for as 0.3% gain, after rising by 1.2% in January.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.54% to 83.32.
The U.S. was to release government data on initial jobless claims later Thursday and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was to speak.