The US dollar languished near fresh 2-1/2-year lows against its major rivals on Thursday as progress toward agreeing a U.S. stimulus package and a Brexit dealboosted risk appetite at the expense of the safest assets, Reuters reports. The euro traded at US$1.21945 early in the Asian day, after reaching US$1.22120 on Wednesday, the strongest since April 2018. The UK pound bought US$1.3500 having risen to US$1.3553 the previous session for the first time since May 2018. The dollar index jerked higher after the Federal Reserve's announcement, but then sank back towards the day's low of 90.126, a level not seen since April 2018. The Australian dollar was also largely steady at 75.807 U.S. cents, while its New Zealand peer slipped 0.1 percent to 71.05 U.S. cents.

Source: The Standard December 17, 2020 04:30 UTC