WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar firmed up against major counterparts on Tuesday amid rising bond yields thanks to the momentum in vaccine rollout and on expectations of more stimulus measures.
Markets are awaiting President Joe Biden's announcement about infrastructure spending plan, due tomorrow.
According to a report released by the Conference Board, consumer confidence in the U.S. skyrocketed by much more than anticipated in the month of March.
The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index spiked to 109.7 in March from a downwardly revised 90.4 in February. Economists had expected the consumer confidence index to climb to 96.0 from the 91.3 originally reported for the previous month.
With the much bigger than expected increase, the consumer confidence index reached its highest level since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March of 2020.
The yield on 10-Year U.S. Treasury Note rose to 1.78% before easing a bit.
The Dollar Index advanced to 93.35 this morning, gaining about 0.45%. The index was last seen hovering around 93.30, up nearly 0.4% from previous close.
Against the Euro, the dollar firmed up to $1.1720, gaining about 0.4%. Eurozone economic confidence improved more-than-expected in March, survey results from the European Commission showed.
The economic sentiment index climbed to 101.0 in March from 93.4 in the previous month. The score was above economists' forecast of 96.0. This was the highest reading since February 2020.
The Pound Sterling was weaker by nearly 0.25%, fetching $1.3732 a unit, after having closed at $1.3764 on Monday.
The Yen weakened to 110.35 a dollar, nearly 0.5% down from previous close of 109.82 a dollar. The total value of retail sales in Japan was down 1.5 percent on year in February, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said on Tuesday - coming in at 11.628 trillion yen.
That beat forecasts for a decline of 2.8 percent following the 2.4 percent drop in the previous month.
Against the Aussie, the dollar was gaining more than 0.5%, having firmed up to 0.7593 from 0.7633.
Against Swiss franc, the dollar was stronger, fetching CHF 0.9421 a unit, up from CHF 0.9392. A measure signaling future turning points in the Swiss economy climbed to its highest in over a decade in March, suggesting a faster pace of economic recovery in the coming months.
The economic barometer rose to 117.8 from a revised 102.6 in February, the KOF Economic Institute said Tuesday. Economists had expected the index to climb to 104.6.
The Loonie weakened to 1.2633 a dollar from 1.2591 on Monday, giving up nearly 0.35%.
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