U.S. dollar advances amid rising safe haven demand

New York, U.S. | Xinhua | The U.S. dollar gained ground in late trading on Monday amid heightened demand for safe haven.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, grew 0.28 percent to 95.9100.

“The U.S. Dollar is stronger this morning as markets tumble ahead of a busy last week of the month featuring the Fed meeting and announcement on Wednesday,” said a research note by foreign exchange and international payment solutions provider Tempus, Inc. on Monday.

Expectations at the moment are leaning toward a hawkish Fed that will not hesitate in telegraphing a move to increase rates starting in March, according to Tempus.

Moreover, the rising tension between Russia and Ukraine as well as between the United Arab Emirates and Yemen’s Houthi rebel militia drove up demand for safe haven in global capital market, which benefits the U.S. dollar and gold.

In late New York trading, the euro decreased to 1.1321 U.S. dollars from 1.1341 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound fell to 1.3481 dollars from 1.3554 U.S. dollars in the previous session. The Australian dollar softened to 0.7130 U.S. dollar from 0.7175 dollar.

The U.S. dollar bought 113.82 Japanese yen, higher than 113.66 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar rose to 0.9145 Swiss franc from 0.9117 Swiss franc, and it increased to 1.2647 Canadian dollars from 1.2574 Canadian dollars.

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Xinhua