TOKYO: The dollar ticked higher Tuesday despite comments from a Federal Reserve official that cast doubt on a mid-year interest rate hike, while Greece´s bailout woes held back the euro.
In Tokyo, the greenback bought 119.44 yen, up from 119.22 yen in New York and sharply higher from 118.62 yen in Tokyo earlier Monday.
The euro was mixed, slipping to $1.0734 from $1.0741 while it strengthened to 128.20 yen against 128.05 yen in US trade.
The rise in the dollar came despite a key Federal Reserve official suggesting a US rate hike could be pushed back beyond mid-year.
New York Fed President William C. Dudley said recent inflation data was not strong enough to warrant a near-term rise, even though economic growth was healthy.
“The Fed will likely start tightening later in the year, and there´s a strong appetite in Japan for foreign portfolio and direct investments,” said Taisuke Tanaka, Deutsche Bank´s chief currency strategist in Tokyo. “We continue to recommend buying the dollar-yen on dips.”