Investing.com - The dollar held onto gains against other major currencies on Friday, hovering at a one-and-a-half week high as markets had largely priced in the information given in former FBI director James Comey’s testimony and as global geopolitical worries continued to subside.
EUR/USD slipped 0.28% to 1.1179, the lowest since May 31.
Comey accused President Donald Trump of firing him to try to undermine his investigation into possible collusion by the Trump campaign team with Russia's alleged efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election.
Meanwhile, the euro remained vulnerable after the European Central Bank on Thursday cut its forecast for inflation this year to 1.5%, down from 1.7% in March.
The forecast came after the central bank left interest rates unchanged in a widely expected move.
GBP/USD was down 1.68% at a two-month low of 1.2738 after U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May said she will not be resigning and that she will seek permission from the Queen to form a new government on Friday.
The announcement came after May's Conservative Party lost its parliamentary majority in Thursday’s general election, potentially disrupting Brexit negotiations.
May faced calls to leave the government on Friday after the election left no single party with a clear claim to power just 10 days ahead of the start of Brexit negotiations.
Earlier Friday, the U.K. Office for National Statistics said manufacturing production increased by 0.2% in April, disappointing expectations for a gain of 0.9%. Year-on-year, manufacturing production was flat in April.
The report also showed that industrial production gained 0.2% in April, below forecasts for a 0.8% increase.
USD/JPY advanced 0.49% to 110.43, while USD/CHF gained 0.44% to trade at 0.9715.
The Australian and New Zealand dollars were weaker, with AUD/USD down 0.20% at 0.7534 and with NZD/USD edging 0.10% lower to 0.7203.
Meanwhile, USD/CAD was little changed at 1.3511.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.46% at 97.39, the highest since May 30.