The U.S dollar, on Tuesday, November 22, resumed its upward trajectory buoyed by a surge in U.S. existing home sales last month, Reuters reports.
On Monday, the dollar sold off slightly as investors took advantage of a holiday-shortened week to square positions and book profits on a U.S. currency that has logged nearly two weeks of extended gains.
In that span, the dollar index has gained nearly 5 percent on expectations U.S. President-elect Donald Trump would boost fiscal spending, in turn elevating inflation and lifting interest rates.
Data on Tuesday showed U.S. home resales rose two percent in October to an annual rate of 5.6 million units, the highest level in more than 9-1/2 years. That pushed the dollar to session highs versus the yen and drove a turnaround in the dollar index.
“The greenback should continue to benefit from mounting expectations for inflation and a potentially faster pace of Fed rate hikes,” said Omer Esiner, chief market analyst at Commonwealth Foreign Exchange in Washington.
In late morning trading, the dollar rose 0.4 percent against the yen to 111.20 yen. On Monday, the dollar had hit a six-month high versus the Japanese currency.
On Monday, the greenback had set a near six-month high of 111.36 yen, which amounted to a gain of 10 percent from its Nov. 9 trough near 101 yen.
The dollar index rose 0.1 percent to 101.19 as the euro fell 0.3 percent against the dollar to $1.0598. The shared currency was not far from a nearly one-year low against the dollar hit last week.
