NEW YORK: The US dollar fell broadly against its major rivals in late trading on Friday.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, dropped 0.67 per cent to 103.7153.
In late New York trading, the euro rose to US$1.0682 from US$1.0611 in the previous session, and the British pound was up to US$1.2197 from US$1.2121 in the previous session.
The US dollar bought 131.67 Japanese yen, lower than 133.49 Japanese yen of the previous session. The US dollar was down to 0.9252 Swiss francs from 0.9298 Swiss francs, and it was down to 1.3719 Canadian dollars from 1.3725 Canadian dollars. The US dollar was down to 10.4809 Swedish Kronor from 10.5152 Swedish Kronor.
“Declining Treasury yields and weaker-than-expected consumer sentiment report put pressure on the American currency,“ Vladimir Zernov, an analyst with market information supplier FX Empire, said on Friday.
US Treasury yields decreased on Friday as investors cautiously assessed the state of the financial sector in the wake of recent banking turmoil. The yield on the benchmark US 10-year Treasury fell by 19 basis points to around 3.39 per cent on Friday afternoon, and the yield on the 2-year Treasury note also dropped. A rising yield is dollar bullish, while a falling yield is dollar bearish.
On the data front, the preliminary reading of the University of Michigan consumer sentiment index fell to 63.4 in March from February’s 67, compared to the market consensus of 67. – Bernama