Investing.com – The U.S. dollar was mixed against its major counterparts on Wednesday, as the euro slipped amid concerns over political instability in Portugal while the yen’s gains remained limited by the threat of fresh intervention.
During European morning trade, the greenback was slightly higher against the euro, with EUR/USD slipping 0.12% to hit 1.4178.
The fate of Portugal’s government was hanging in the balance on Wednesday, after the country's Prime Minister threatened to resign if a vote on fresh austerity measures failed to pass a parliamentary vote.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD sliding 0.29% to hit 1.6315.
Meanwhile, the greenback was down against the yen, with USD/JPY shedding 0.22% to hit 80.78. Earlier in the day, the Tokyo metropolitan government advised families against allowing infants to drink tap water after higher-than-permitted levels of radioactive iodine were detected.
The greenback was also slightly lower against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF dropping 0.48% to hit 0.8989 as crude oil prices remained well supported amid escalating violence in the Middle East.
Elsewhere, the greenback was slightly higher against its Canadian cousin but dipped lower against its Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD easing up 0.05% to hit 0.9814, AUD/USD rising 0.06% to hit 1.0111 and NZD/USD inching up 0.06% to hit 0.7404.
Also Wednesday, official data showed that New Zealand’s current account deficit widened to NZD3.52 billion in the fourth quarter, outstripping expectations for a deficit of NZD2.15 billion.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.04%.
Also Wednesday, a government report estimated the damage from Japan’s March 11 record earthquake and tsunami at as much as JPY25 trillion, or USD309 billion.
During European morning trade, the greenback was slightly higher against the euro, with EUR/USD slipping 0.12% to hit 1.4178.
The fate of Portugal’s government was hanging in the balance on Wednesday, after the country's Prime Minister threatened to resign if a vote on fresh austerity measures failed to pass a parliamentary vote.
The greenback was also higher against the pound, with GBP/USD sliding 0.29% to hit 1.6315.
Meanwhile, the greenback was down against the yen, with USD/JPY shedding 0.22% to hit 80.78. Earlier in the day, the Tokyo metropolitan government advised families against allowing infants to drink tap water after higher-than-permitted levels of radioactive iodine were detected.
The greenback was also slightly lower against the Swiss franc, with USD/CHF dropping 0.48% to hit 0.8989 as crude oil prices remained well supported amid escalating violence in the Middle East.
Elsewhere, the greenback was slightly higher against its Canadian cousin but dipped lower against its Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD easing up 0.05% to hit 0.9814, AUD/USD rising 0.06% to hit 1.0111 and NZD/USD inching up 0.06% to hit 0.7404.
Also Wednesday, official data showed that New Zealand’s current account deficit widened to NZD3.52 billion in the fourth quarter, outstripping expectations for a deficit of NZD2.15 billion.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.04%.
Also Wednesday, a government report estimated the damage from Japan’s March 11 record earthquake and tsunami at as much as JPY25 trillion, or USD309 billion.