By Victor Reklaitis, MarketWatch

Analyst: Trump 'seems to be an increasing factor for market sentiment and direction again'

The dollar climbed against most of its rivals early Wednesday, but lost ground vs. the yen as geopolitical worries spurred buying in Japan's haven currency.

Softer-than-expected economic reports from the eurozone and U.K. were helping to send traders toward the buck.

How are currencies performing?

The ICE U.S. Dollar Index , which tracks the greenback against six rivals, rose to 93.867, up from 93.563 late Tuesday in New York.

Against the yen , the dollar traded at Yen109.76, down from Yen110.90 late Tuesday.

The euro fell to $1.1733, down from $1.1780 Tuesday, while the British pound slid to $1.3367 from $1.3432.

The Turkish lira continued its recent unraveling, with the dollar last fetching 4.8179 lira, up from 4.6691 late Tuesday.

Check out: Being long the dollar is cool again (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/being-long-the-dollar-is-cool-again-2018-05-21)

But also:Why it may be downhill from here for the dollar (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/it-may-be-downhill-from-here-for-the-us-dollar-2018-05-14)

What's driving the FX market?

Geopolitical concerns remain a focus Wednesday. On Tuesday, President Donald Trump told reporters he wasn't really happy with the progress of U.S.-China trade talks (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/trump-today-president-suggests-world--class-poker-player-xi-to-blame-for-shift-in-north-koreas-attitude-about-summit-2018-05-22), and hinted that his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may not go ahead as planned. (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/trump-says-summit-with-north-koreas-kim-may-happen-later-than-scheduled-2018-05-22)

In Turkey, the currency is hitting historic lows in the wake of troubling statements from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/turkish-lira-hits-historic-low-as-erdogan-eyes-control-of-countrys-central-bank-2018-05-15). He has said he wants to take more responsibility for monetary policy in the country, stoking concerns about the independence and credibility of Turkey's central bank.

Meanwhile, purchasing managers' indexes for manufacturing and services in the eurozone disappointed on Wednesday, coming in below forecasts. And a report showed U.K. consumer prices rose 2.4% in April, down from 2.5% in March and missing expectations for a 2.5% reading (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/uk-stocks-pull-back-from-record-high-with-inflation-data-on-deck-2018-05-23).

Read:Why the Bank of England might not be in a hurry to raise rates (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/heres-a-reason-why-the-bank-of-england-might-not-be-in-a-hurry-to-raise-rates-2018-05-22)

And see:'Greek-like crisis' fears hang over Italy's markets as populists ready government (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/greek-like-crisis-fears-hang-over-italys-markets-as-populists-ready-government-2018-05-21)

What are strategists saying?

"Market sentiment has taken a step back as traders are looking more towards safe haven plays such as the yen," said Richard Perry, a Hantec Markets analyst, in a note.

"Trump has tended to have less of an impact recently, but he seems to be an increasing factor for market sentiment and direction again."

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 23, 2018 05:38 ET (09:38 GMT)