Dollar rises but downtrend intact

NEW YORK: The dollar gained on Tuesday, taking a breather from a sell-off that took it to its lowest in more than 2-1/2 years last week, as US equities came under pressure after recent gains, while sterling slid as investors awaited the outcome of Brexit trade-deal talks.

“Any good news we had on the vaccines last week has been fully priced in, said Ron Simpson, managing director, global currency analysis, at Action Economics in Tampa, Florida.

An index tracking the dollar’s value rose 0.1% to 90.978.

Upbeat economic sentiment data from Germany lifted the euro earlier in the session, but it was last flat to slightly lower at $1.2104. So far this year, the euro has gained more than 8% versus the greenback. Tuesday’s big mover was sterling, which sank against both the dollar and the euro. Against the dollar, the pound was last 0.4% lower at $1.3323 It was also 0.6 lower against the euro, which rose to 90.82 pence. The dollar was up 0.1% against the yen at 104.16 yen, but it slipped 0.1% versus the Swiss franc to 0.8896 franc. Overall, the dollar’s weak trend remained firmly entrenched, analysts said.—Reuters