WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar climbed higher against its major counterparts on Wednesday, as bond yields rose to near 9-month high on reports that President-elect Donald Trump is planning to use emergency measures to allow for a new tariff program.
The yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury note climbed to around 4.73%, contributing to the dollar's rise.
In economic news, data from payroll processor ADP said private sector employment rose by 122,000 jobs in December after climbing by 146,000 jobs in November. Economists had expected private sector employment to grow by 140,000 jobs.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department released a separate report unexpectedly showing another modest decrease by initial jobless claims in the week ended January 4th.
The report said initial jobless claims slipped to 201,000, a decrease of 10,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 211,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 218,000.
The Labor Department is scheduled to release its more closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday, potentially providing additional clarity about the strength of the labor market.
The minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting did not provide much insight into the outlook for interest rates other than to suggest officials plan to take a 'careful approach' to future decisions.
The minutes said the careful approach will be needed due to a variety of factors, including increased upside risks to the outlook for inflation due in part to uncertainty about the impact of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's proposed policies.
The dollar index, which climbed to 109.38, pared some gains later on, but still remained firm at 109.02, up by about 0.44% from previous close.
Against the Euro, the dollar firmed to 1.0320 from 1.0342, and strengthened to 1.2364 against Pound Sterling from 1.2478.
The dollar advanced against the Japanese currency, rising to 158.37 yen a unit, and against the Aussie, it firmed to 0.6217 from 0.6231.
The Swiss franc weakened to 0.9113 a dollar, while the Loonie edged down marginally to 1.4374 a unit of the U.S. currency.
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