{"id":107612,"date":"2021-02-22T02:08:15","date_gmt":"2021-02-22T02:08:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fin2me.com\/?p=107612"},"modified":"2021-02-22T02:08:15","modified_gmt":"2021-02-22T02:08:15","slug":"dollar-falls-as-improving-sentiment-boosts-riskier-currencies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fin2me.com\/markets\/dollar-falls-as-improving-sentiment-boosts-riskier-currencies\/","title":{"rendered":"Dollar falls as improving sentiment boosts riskier currencies"},"content":{"rendered":"
TOKYO (Reuters) – The U.S. dollar fell to a three-year low against its Australian counterpart and teetered near three-year low against the British pound as progress in curbing coronavirus infections boosted sentiment for riskier assets.<\/p> The greenback also slipped toward a three-year low against the New Zealand dollar as traders sought currencies with close ties to the global commodities trade due to an improving economic outlook.<\/p>\n The U.S. currency, which is often considered a safe asset during times of uncertainty, is likely to fall further as more investors focus on economic recovery once the worst of the coronavirus pandemic passes.<\/p>\n \u201cCommodity currencies and the pound are particularly strong against the dollar, and this trend looks set to continue,\u201d said Yukio Ishizuki, foreign exchange strategist at Daiwa Securities.<\/p>\n \u201cBritain\u2019s vaccination programme is making a lot of progress. Economic activity is gradually returning to normal in many places, which puts some pressure on the dollar.\u201d<\/p>\n The Australian dollar hit $0.7892, its highest since March 2018 while the New Zealand currency rose to $0.7315, its strongest since April 2018.<\/p>\n Vaccine rollouts will ease risks to Australia\u2019s economy over the year, ratings agency Fitch said on Monday when it maintained the country\u2019s top AAA credit rating, albeit with a negative outlook.<\/p>\n The euro last traded at $1.2124<\/p>\n The British pound bought $1.4030, close to a three-year high.<\/p>\n Against the yen, the dollar held steady at 105.45<\/p>\n Australia on Monday began its mass COVID-19 vaccine programme as the country looked set to report no local cases for the third straight day, which gave the Aussie a boost.<\/p>\n Sterling is also in focus because British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will plot a path out of coronavirus lockdowns later on Monday, aided by one of the fastest vaccine rollouts in the world.<\/p>\n Dollar net short positioning fell last week to $29.09 billion, which is the lowest level since mid-December, according to calculations by Reuters and Commodity Futures Trading Commission data.<\/p>\n U.S. dollar net shorts have fallen for four straight weeks, which shows that there are still some investors who are optimistic about the greenback.<\/p>\n Long-term Treasury yields have been rising recently, and the United States has also improved its response to the coronavirus, which will lend the dollar some mild support, Daiwa\u2019s Ishizuki said.<\/p>\n In the cryptocurrency market, bitcoin eased slightly to $57,090, but was still near a record high as the digital asset gains more mainstream acceptance.<\/p>\n Ether, a rival cryptocurrency, fell to $1,918.<\/p>\n