On Wednesday, the Fed raised the benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point, as expected, and at the same time softened the tone of its monetary policy statement after saying that it “anticipates” the need for further price increases.
It sent the dollar and Treasury yields tumbling after the decision, with traders taking the comments as a signal that a peak in U.S. interest rates had been reached.
On the other hand, the British pound rose 0.2% to its highest level in nearly 11 months at $1.25905, while the euro rose 0.19% to $1.1082, to stay close to its last peak in a year.
The dollar index fell 0.22% to 101.05 at 0650 GMT, after falling more than 0.6% in the previous session.
Shares of Pac West Bank fell 52% in post-close trading on Wednesday, which also happened to varying degrees in the shares of many other U.S. regional lenders.
Cautious risk appetite supported the Japanese yen, which represents a safe haven in the market turmoil, as it rose around 0.3% against the dollar to 134.29.
The risk-sensitive Australian and New Zealand dollars reversed their previous losses in Asian trading, rising 0.3% each to $0.6692 and $0.6249, respectively.
All eyes are on the European Central Bank, which is expected to raise interest rates for the seventh consecutive meeting later Thursday.
Read the Latest World News Today on The Eastern Herald.
