U.S. Dollar Rises Ahead Of FOMC Meeting

The U.S. dollar strengthened against the other major currencies in the early European session on Monday, as traders expect the Federal Reserve to raise rates in its meeting due later in the week.

The Federal Reserve begins its 2-day meeting on December 15-16. The FOMC is widely expected to increase interest rates from the near-zero policy which was in force since December 2008.

Investors also await for the language of the Fed chief Janet Yellen on inflation outlook and the frequency of follow-up rate hikes.

The U.S. treasury yields also rose as bond prices fell. The benchmark 10-year bond yield advanced 2.17 percent, while yield on 2-year note was up by 0.91 percent.

In the Asian session today, the U.S. dollar held steady against its major rivals.

In the early European trading, the U.S. dollar rose to 1.0945 against the euro and 1.5144 against the pound, from early lows of 1.0992 and 1.5230, respectively. If the greenback extends its uptrend, it is likely to find resistance around 1.07 against the euro and 1.49 against the pound.

Against the Swiss franc and the yen, the greenback advanced to 0.9872 and 121.35 from early lows of 0.9829 and 120.64, respectively. The greenback is likely to find resistance around 1.00 against the franc and 123.00 against the yen.

Meanwhile, the Australian and the New Zealand dollars fell to 0.7223 and 0.6727 from an early 3-week high of 0.7159 and a 5-day high 0.6691, respectively. On the downside, 0.74 against the aussie and 0.68 against the kiwi are seen as the next support levels for the greenback.

Against the Canadian dollar, the greenback dropped to 1.3701 from a early high of 1.3755. The greenback may test support near the 1.38 region.

Looking ahead, at 7:00 am ET, Bank of England Deputy Governor Nemat Shafik is expected to give her views on monetary policy at the Institute of Directors in London.

At 10:00 am ET, Bank of Portugal Governor and ECB Governing Council Member Carlos Costa and economist Paul Krugman are expected to speak at a conference in honor of Portuguese economist Jose da Silva Lopes in Lisbon.