U.S. Dollar Falls Amid Risk-on Mood, Fed Rate Cut Bet

(RTTNews) - The U.S. dollar weakened against other major currencies in the Asian session on Wednesday amid increased risk-on mood, as some traders are still looking to cash in on the strong upside in the markets seen over the past several weeks. Furthermore, growing market acceptance that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will lower interest rates further this year amid evidence of diminishing inflationary pressure and a dismal growth forecast, also pushed the USD lower.

Meanwhile, two U.S. Fed officials signaled that interest rates are likely to remain on hold until at least September due to a murky economic outlook. Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson backed a wait-and-see approach, citing uncertainty and warning against temporary price increases becoming sustained inflation.

Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic told CNBC that he's leaning toward just one quarter point rate cut this year, given concerns about rising inflation stoked by higher import taxes.

The U.S. dollar started trading lower in the aftermath of U.S. fiscal concerns, which resulted in a surprising downgrading of the U.S. government's sovereign credit rating on Friday.

In the Asian trading today, the U.S. dollar fell to more than a 3-week low of 1.3436 against the pound and nearly a 2-week low of 143.73 against the yen, from yesterday's closing quotes of 1.3398 and 144.32, respectively. If the greenback extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 1.35 against the pound and 140.00 against the yen.

Against the euro and the Swiss franc, the greenback slipped to 2-week lows of 1.1340 and 0.8221 from Tuesday's closing quotes of 1.1288 and 0.8268, respectively. On the downside, 1.18 against the euro and 0.80 against the franc are seen as the next support levels for the greenback.

The greenback edged down to 0.6453 against the Australian dollar, from yesterday's closing value of 0.6426. The next possible downside target for the greenback is seen around the 0.66 region.

Against the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars, the greenback slid to a 1-week low of 0.5950 and nearly a 2-week low of 1.3887 from Tuesday's closing quotes of 0.5928 and 1.3909, respectively. The greenback may test support near 0.60 against the kiwi and 1.37 against the loonie.

Looking ahead, U.K. house price data for March is due to be released in the European session at 4:30 am ET. Economists expect house prices to climb 5.2 percent on a yearly basis in March, following a 5.4 percent rise in February.

In the New York session, U.S. MBA mortgage approvals data, Canada new housing price index for April and U.S. EIA crude oil data are slated for release.