US dollar extends losses amid Fed chair Yellen’s remarks

New York: The US dollar continued to drop against most major currencies on Wednesday as Chair Janet Yellen said the Federal Reserve planned to raise interest rates carefully.

Fed Chair Yellen said on Tuesday the US central bank will move cautiously in light of a weak global economy and stubbornly low inflation, Xinhua reported.

“Given the risks to the outlook, I consider it appropriate for the committee to proceed cautiously in adjusting policy,” Yellen said in a speech to the Economic Club of New York on Tuesday.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was down 0.3 percent at 94.857 in late trading.

In late New York trading, the euro rose to $1.1338 from $1.1298 of the previous session, and the British pound dropped to $1.4383 from $1.4386. The Australian dollar went up to $0.7671 from $0.7637.

The US dollar bought 112.44 Japanese yen, lower than 112.74 yen of the previous session. The US dollar decreased to 0.9634 Swiss franc from 0.9661 Swiss franc and inched down to 1.2966 Canadian dollars from 1.3056 Canadian dollars.

–IANS