The dollar remains near its highest level in six weeks.
The US dollar remained stable on Wednesday, close to its highest level in six weeks, supported by increasing market expectations of a potential rise in US interest rates aimed at curbing inflationary pressures linked to the situation in the Middle East.
The Greenback Supported by Safe-Haven Demand
The dollar index, which measures the performance of the American currency against a basket of major currencies, stood at 99.306 points, after rising more than 1% since the beginning of May.
This increase is fueled by renewed investor interest in safe-haven assets as well as expectations of a monetary tightening from the Federal Reserve before the end of the year.
Euro Declines, Sterling Stable
The euro fell to 1.16025 dollars in the latest trades, having reached its lowest level since April 8 the day before.
Meanwhile, the British pound stabilized at 1.34 dollars, remaining close to its weakest level in six weeks reached earlier this week.
Pressure on Risk-Linked Currencies
The Australian dollar was set at 0.7105 dollars, while the New Zealand dollar reached 0.5834 dollars. Both currencies are hovering near their lowest levels in five weeks, negatively impacted by the persistent strength of the greenback.
Japanese Yen Under Pressure
The dollar’s rise has also pushed the Japanese yen towards the threshold of 160 yen per dollar, a level that prompted Japanese authorities to intervene in the currency market last month for the first time in nearly two years.
In the latest transactions, the yen was trading around 158.93 per dollar, amid heightened market vigilance regarding a potential new intervention by Japanese authorities.
