06.07.201423:11:20UTC+00US dollar ascends to 1-week high before Fed minutes

The US dollar climbed to one-week peak versus the euro before the Federal Reserve releases its June 17-18 meeting on July 9, despite speculation it would move forward the timing of interest rate hikes.

The greenback was slightly changed at $1.3588 from July 4 as of 9:09 a.m. in Tokyo after it hit $1.3584, the firmest since June 26. It traded at ¥102.11, previously ¥102.06. The euro was unchanged at ¥138.75.

“What the market’s looking for is an indication that the FOMC debate is maybe getting a little bit more lively. Should we see that, obviously we’d expect the U.S. dollar to start strengthening a little bit more,” said Sam Tuck, Senior Currency Strategist at ANZ Bank New Zealand Ltd.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, trailing the greenback versus 10 major counterparts, was slightly changed at 1,007.66, holding 0.2% gain from last week, the biggest since the five days ended May 23.