qBy Sarah Turner, MarketWatch
SYDNEY (MarketWatch) — The U.S. dollar edged lower against most major rivals on Wednesday, with investors rejecting the greenback’s safe-haven appeal in favor of riskier bets.
The dollar index (DXY 78.49, -0.47, -0.60%) , which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, traded at 78.619, compared to 78.972 in late North American trading.
Chinese President Hu Jintao recently questioned the dollar’s prospects in an interview ahead of his official visit to the U.S. Hu is slated to hold a joint press conference on Wednesday with U.S. President Obama. Read more on Chinese President Hu’s visit to Washington.
The dollar’s decline extended weakness seen Tuesday, when a rise in German investor confidence, a pick-up in U.K. inflation, and easing euro-zone debt worries following successful short-term debt sales in Spain and Greece helped prop up riskier assets.
The euro (EURUSD 1.3477, +0.0094, +0.7022%) rose again Wednesday, trading at $1.3446, compared to $1.3388 in late North American trading. The British pound (GBPUSD 1.6026, +0.0066, +0.4135%) traded at $1.6007, up from $1.5965 late in the North American session.
Against the Japanese yen (USDYEN 82.0600, -0.5400, -0.6538%) , the dollar changed hands at 82.18 yen, down from ¥82.61. The Australian dollar (AUDUSD 1.0062, +0.0068, +0.6806%) gained 0.5% to trade over parity once again, hitting $1.0034 in the session.
Asian markets opened in a “risk-on mode” following gains in global stock markets, said currency strategists at Credit Agricole.
“Even though Citigroup Inc. (C 4.80, -0.33, -6.43%) earnings missed estimates as revenues from stock and bond trading fell more than at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM 44.75, -0.16, -0.36%) , this disappointment did not seem to dent market confidence,” the strategists said.
Helping to mitigate the Citigroup numbers, International Business Machines Inc. (IBM 150.65, +0.65, +0.43%) and Apple Inc. (AAPL 340.65, -7.83, -2.25%) both posted better-than-expected earnings late Tuesday.
Earnings from banking giant Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS 174.68, -0.32, -0.18%) are on the agenda for later in the global trading day Wednesday, along with data on U.S. housing starts.
