Tokyo - The dollar rose against the euro and yen in Asia on Wednesday, adding to gains driven by a US Federal Reserve official's support for a September interest rate hike.
In Tokyo, the dollar fetched 124.45 yen, against 124.36 yen in New York and 123.98 yen in Tokyo earlier on Tuesday.
The euro edged down to $1.0863 and 135.19 yen from $1.0882 and 135.32 yen in US trade.
On Tuesday, the dollar advanced against other major currencies after Fed Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart told The Wall Street Journal that he supports lifting rates in September barring an unexpected downturn in the world's top economy.
Lockhart told the paper it “will take a significant deterioration in the economic picture for me to be disinclined to move ahead”.
Currency traders are keeping a close eye on US economic data as they try to gauge the timeline for a rate hike - a plus for the dollar - which is widely expected in September or December.
Jobs data at the end of the week are now in focus.
“Our call all year has been for the Fed to start a very gradual rate hike cycle from September,” Callum Henderson, the global head of foreign-exchange research at Standard Chartered, told Bloomberg News.
“The Lockhart comments added to dollar gains by putting this prospect back on the market's radar.”
AFP