Investing.com - The dollar slipped lower against other major currencies on Friday, despite upbeat comments by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen as investors remained cautious ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony scheduled later in the day.
EUR/USD rose 0.24% to 1.0691, re-approaching Tuesday’s five-week highs of 1.0719.
The dollar initially strengthened after Fed Chair Janet Yellen said the central bank should continue to raise interest rates, but slowly.
Speaking at a conference in San Francisco, Yellen said that "allowing the economy to run markedly and persistently ‘hot’ would be risky and unwise," before adding: "I consider it prudent to adjust the stance of monetary policy gradually over time."
Meanwhile, investors remained cautious ahead of Donald Trump’s inaurguration later Friday amid sustained uncertainty over the new administration’s fiscal and economic policies.
GBP/USD edged up 0.16% to trade at 1.2364.
Elsewhere, USD/JPY slipped 0.21% to 114.61.
The Aussie held steady against the greenback, with AUD/USD at 0.7564, after hitting a fresh two-month high of 0.7588 earlier in the day. NZD/USD edged up 0.17% to trade at 0.7203, just off a one-month peak of 0.7225.
The two currencies were supported by data on Friday showing that China’s gross domestic product rose 6.8% in the fourth quarter of 2016, in line with expectations.
Year-on-year, China’s economy grew at a rate of 6.8%, slightly above expectations for a growth rate of 6.7%.
The data eased concerns over a slowdown in the world’s second biggest economy, although worries surrounding the country’s growing debt persisted.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.15% at 100.95.