Investing.com - The dollar was trading in tight ranges against the other major currencies on Wednesday amid hopes that politicians in Washington would reach a last minute agreement on a deal to avert a U.S. debt default.
During European late morning trade, the dollar pushed higher against the yen, with USD/JPY easing up 0.12% to 98.29.
Ratings agency Fitch placed its triple-A rating on the U.S. on “rating watch negative” on Tuesday, saying the political impasse over a deal to reopen the government and raise the debt ceiling has undermined confidence in U.S. economic policy.
If an agreement to raise the federal borrowing limit is not struck ahead of Thursday’s deadline, the U.S. will face an unprecedented sovereign debt default.
Senate leaders were to continue negotiations aimed at ending the fiscal impasse on Wednesday, after a last minute deal put forward by House Republicans collapsed.
The euro edged higher against the dollar, with EUR/USD inching up 0.09% to 1.3536.
The euro was little changed after data released on Wednesday showed that the annual rate of consumer inflation in the euro zone was unchanged from a preliminary estimate of 1.1% in September.
A separate report showed that the euro zone’s trade surplus widened to EUR12.3 billion in August from EUR11 billion in April, broadly in line with forecasts.
The dollar was lower against the pound, with GBP/USD climbing 0.28% to 1.6040.
Sterling was boosted after data showed that the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the U.K. posted the largest decline since June 1997 in September.
The Office for National Statistics said that the U.K. claimant count fell by 41,700 in September, outstripping expectations for a decline of 25,000 people.
The rate of unemployment held steady at 7.7% in August, in line with expectations and unchanged from July.
The dollar slipped lower against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF dipping 0.08% to 0.9114.
Elsewhere, the greenback was lower against its Australian, New Zealand and Canadian counterparts, with AUD/USD up 0.09% to 0.9534, NZD/USD advancing 0.51% to 0.8422 and USD/CAD slipping 0.08% to 1.0371.
The New Zealand dollar was boosted after a report showed that consumer price inflation in New Zealand rose 0.9% in the third quarter, exceeding expectations for a 0.8% increase, after a 0.2% uptick in the three months to June.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.14% to 80.48.
During European late morning trade, the dollar pushed higher against the yen, with USD/JPY easing up 0.12% to 98.29.
Ratings agency Fitch placed its triple-A rating on the U.S. on “rating watch negative” on Tuesday, saying the political impasse over a deal to reopen the government and raise the debt ceiling has undermined confidence in U.S. economic policy.
If an agreement to raise the federal borrowing limit is not struck ahead of Thursday’s deadline, the U.S. will face an unprecedented sovereign debt default.
Senate leaders were to continue negotiations aimed at ending the fiscal impasse on Wednesday, after a last minute deal put forward by House Republicans collapsed.
The euro edged higher against the dollar, with EUR/USD inching up 0.09% to 1.3536.
The euro was little changed after data released on Wednesday showed that the annual rate of consumer inflation in the euro zone was unchanged from a preliminary estimate of 1.1% in September.
A separate report showed that the euro zone’s trade surplus widened to EUR12.3 billion in August from EUR11 billion in April, broadly in line with forecasts.
The dollar was lower against the pound, with GBP/USD climbing 0.28% to 1.6040.
Sterling was boosted after data showed that the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the U.K. posted the largest decline since June 1997 in September.
The Office for National Statistics said that the U.K. claimant count fell by 41,700 in September, outstripping expectations for a decline of 25,000 people.
The rate of unemployment held steady at 7.7% in August, in line with expectations and unchanged from July.
The dollar slipped lower against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF dipping 0.08% to 0.9114.
Elsewhere, the greenback was lower against its Australian, New Zealand and Canadian counterparts, with AUD/USD up 0.09% to 0.9534, NZD/USD advancing 0.51% to 0.8422 and USD/CAD slipping 0.08% to 1.0371.
The New Zealand dollar was boosted after a report showed that consumer price inflation in New Zealand rose 0.9% in the third quarter, exceeding expectations for a 0.8% increase, after a 0.2% uptick in the three months to June.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.14% to 80.48.