Foreign exchange - Greenback strikes greater towards euro, yen

© Reuters. Dollar regains ground as focus turns to Fed meeting

Investing.com – The dollar pushed higher against the euro and the yen on Thursday after losses in the previous sessions as investors turned their attention to next week’s Federal Reserve meeting amid expectations for an imminent rate hike.

was down 0.39% to 1.0908, off Wednesday’s five week highs of 1.1042.

The euro had continued to strengthen in the wake of last Thursday’s rally after the latest round of easing announced by the European Central Bank fell well short of market expectations.

On Wednesday, ECB Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny said market expectations for additional stimulus measures had been too high and that investors should have paid more attention to economic fundamentals.

The dollar was also higher against the yen, with rising 0.28% to 121.79.

The yen had been boosted earlier in the week as a rout in commodity markets, in particular a selloff in oil fueled increased demand for safe haven assets.

The , which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose 0.38% to 97.71.

Demand for the dollar continued to be underpinned by expectations that the Fed is on track to raise interest rates for the first time since 2006 at its upcoming meeting on December 15-16.

Higher interest rates would make the dollar more attractive to yield-seeking investors.

Elsewhere, the Australian dollar rallied after a robust domestic jobs report was seen as lessening the chances for further rate cuts by the country’s central banks.

was up 0.86% at 0.7289 after rising as high as 0.7339 earlier.

The New Zealand dollar was also higher after the Reserve Bank cut interest rates but said additional easing measures should not be necessary. was last at 0.6737 after initially touching highs of 0.6782.

The Canadian dollar remained close to 11-year lows, with at 1.3558 as lower oil prices continued to weigh on the loonie.

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Foreign exchange - Greenback strikes greater towards euro, yen