U.S. dollar strengthens as traders bet on hawkish Fed

New York [US], November 18: The U.S. dollar appreciated in late trading on Thursday as market participants digested the latest comments from Federal Reserve officials.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, increased 0.39 percent to 106.6930.
In late New York trading, the euro decreased to 1.0368 U.S. dollars from 1.0394 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound was down to 1.1851 U.S. dollars from 1.1913 dollars in the previous session.
The U.S. dollar bought 140.23 Japanese yen, higher than 139.34 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar increased to 0.9520 Swiss francs from 0.9441 Swiss francs, and it rose to 1.3331 Canadian dollars from 1.3329 Canadian dollars. The U.S. dollar increased to 10.6177 Swedish Kronor from 10.4822 Swedish Kronor.
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said Thursday that the central bank still has a lot of work to do given that its tightening so far "had only limited effects on observed inflation."
He said the Fed's policy rate will need to be increased further to a level high enough to bring inflation down.
San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said Wednesday that somewhere between 4.75 percent and 5.25 percent seems a reasonable place to think about for the level to which officials should raise rates.
Earlier this month, the Fed raised interest rates by 75 basis points for the fourth consecutive meeting, setting the federal funds target range between 3.75 percent and 4 percent.
Source: Xinhua