* Dollar drifts higher * Traders await Powell testimony By Tom Westbrook and Farouq Suleiman SINGAPORE/LONDON, June 21 (Reuters) - The dollar was firm
* Dollar drifts higher * Traders await Powell testimony By Tom Westbrook and Farouq Suleiman SINGAPORE/LONDON, June 21 (Reuters) – The dollar was firmer on Wednesday leading into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s appearance before Congress, where he is expected to strike a hawkish tone, while sterling slipped after hotter-than-expected British inflation data. The annual pace of British consumer price gains was steady at 8.7% in May, against hopes it had cooled since April, with the UK’s inflation rate remaining more persisitent compared to other major economies. After an initial rise, sterling fell as much as 0.56% against the dollar to a low of $1.2691 following this month’s inflation figures. It was last down 0.32% at $1.2722. Adam Cole, chief currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets, said sterling’s weakness may be down to fears that “inflation is high enough and consistent enough for it to become negative for the currency”. Investors and money managers now turn their focus to Fed chief Jerome Powell’s testimony before Congress at 10:00 a.m. ET (1400 GMT). “Despite having paused last week, the Fed officials … still surprisingly aggressively forecasted another 50 basis points in hikes by end 2023,” said currency analysts at Maybank. “It is crucial to see whether (Powell) would more strongly drive home the point that the Fed is serious about another 50 bps of hikes or give the impression that they are ‘data dependent’,” they said. “The former may do more to give additional support to send the dollar index and (bond) yields higher.” In the Asia-Pacific region, the dollar rose by as much as 0.5% against the Japanese yen to 142.15 per dollar after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda on Wednesday reiterated the central bank’s dovish stance to maintain its ultra-loose monetary policy. It was last up 0.29% at 141.83 yen. The rally against the yen pushed the U.S. dollar index , which measures the currency against six major peers, up slightly to 102.58. The euro was trading roughly flat at $1.0918. Elsewhere, there was little appetite for a bounce from either the yuan or the Australian dollar, which have been hit by China’s shaky economic recovery and lack of major stimulus. China set its yuan midpoint weaker than expected on Wednesday and the currency slid to a new seven-month trough of 7.1987 in onshore trade, while the offshore yuan weakened past 7.2 to the dollar. The Aussie had taken a further beating thanks to Tuesday’s less-hawkish-than-expected central bank minutes following this month’s rate hike. It was last down 0.41% at $0.676. “The path of least resistance is further declines,” said Commonwealth Bank of Australia strategist Joe Capurso. “The Aussie could dip below 0.6700 this week, particularly if Powell is hawkish,” he said. Bitcoin extended overnight gains to breach $29,000 for the first time since late May, helped by the launch of a new crypto exchange backed by Fidelity, Citadel Securities and Charles Schwab. It was last at $28,992. ======================================================== Currency bid prices at 1147 GMT Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid Previous Change Session Euro/Dollar $1.0920 $1.0916 +0.04% +1.92% +1.0934 +1.0906 Dollar/Yen 141.8150 141.4350 +0.29% +8.09% +142.1550 +141.2900 Euro/Yen 154.88 154.43 +0.29% +10.39% +155.3400 +154.3100 Dollar/Swiss 0.8974 0.8979 -0.03% -2.93% +0.8994 +0.8969 Sterling/Dollar 1.2728 1.2763 -0.27% +5.25% +1.2802 +1.2691 Dollar/Canadian 1.3217 1.3235 -0.12% -2.44% +1.3246 +1.3209 Aussie/Dollar 0.6765 0.6787 -0.33% -0.76% +0.6799 +0.6757 NZ Dollar/Dollar 0.6173 0.6167 +0.09% -2.79% +0.6186 +0.6158 All spots Tokyo spots Europe spots Volatilities Tokyo Forex market info from BOJ (Reporting by Tom Westbrook and Farouq Suleiman; Editing by Sam Holmes, Kim Coghill and Sharon Singleton)
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