Dollar Climbing In Holiday Trade

The dollar is up slightly against all of its major rivals Wednesday afternoon. Trading activity has been sparse as a number of foreign markets remain closed for Christmas and Boxing Day holidays.

There was also little to no economic data to drive the direction of trade Wednesday. However, investors can look forward to the release of weekly jobless claims, new home sales and consumer confidence Thursday morning.

With little happening on the economic front, traders are keeping a close eye on Washington. Members of President Donald Trump's administration continue to downplay reports the president has privately discussed firing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

White House Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Kevin Hassett told reporters Wednesday that Powell's job is "100 percent" safe.

Asked if he meant the Fed Chairman's job is not in jeopardy by the president, Hassett added, "Absolutely. That's correct."

The comments from Hassett come after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also disputed the reports in a post on Twitter on Saturday, claiming Trump disagrees with the Fed's policy but never suggested firing Powell.

The dollar has climbed to around $1.1360 against the Euro Wednesday afternoon, from an early low of $1.1416.

The buck has risen to around $1.2640 against the pound sterling this afternoon, from a low of $1.2718 this morning.

The greenback slid to an early low of Y110.280 against the Japanese Yen Thursday, but has since rebounded to around Y110.945.