WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar stayed firm against most of its major counterparts on Friday amid bets the European Central Bank and the Bank of England are unlikely to tighten their monetary policies any time soon.
Preliminary data released by the University of Michigan today showed a bigger than expected rebound in U.S. consumer sentiment in the month of June.
The report said the consumer sentiment index climbed to 86.4 in June after falling to 82.9 in May. Economists had expected the index to rise to 84.0.
The index of consumer expectations jumped to 83.8 in June from 78.8 in May, while the current economic conditions index inched up to 90.6 from 89.4.
Meanwhile, investors looked ahead to the upcoming policy meeting of the Federal Reserve. The Fed is scheduled to announce its policy after its two-day meeting, scheduled to take place on June 15-16.
The dollar index, which rose to 90.61, is currently at 90.51, up nearly 0.5% from the previous close.
Against the Euro, the dollar strengthened to 1.2109, gaining nearly 0.6%.
The Pound Sterling weakened against the dollar, fetching $1.4115, more than 0.4% down from Thursday's close of $1.4176. The U.K. economy grew at the fastest pace since July 2020 as government restrictions affecting economic activity continued to ease in April, data from the Office for Statistics showed.
Gross domestic product rose 2.3% month-on-month in April, faster than the 2.1 percent expansion seen in March. The rate was forecast to improve to 2.2%.
The Yen weakened to 109.68 a dollar, easing from 109.32 a dollar Thursday evening.
Against the Aussie, the dollar firmed to $ 0.7705, gaining from $0.7754 a unit of the Australian currency.
The Swiss franc dropped to 0.8983 a dollar from 0.8945, while the Loonie weakened to 1.2165 a dollar from 1.2096.
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