Published by Jessica Weisman-Pitts
Posted on October 13, 2022
By Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The dollar hit a fresh 24-year peak against the yen on Thursday, gaining across the board, after a blistering U.S. inflation report that opened the possibility of a 100-basis-point interest rate hike at next month’s Federal Reserve policy meeting.
Data showed U.S consumer prices increased more than expected in September and underlying inflation pressures continued to escalate, cementing expectations that the Fed will deliver another 75-basis-point (bps) rate increase.
The consumer price index rose 0.4% last month after gaining 0.1% in August, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the CPI climbing 0.2%. In the 12 months through September, the CPI increased 8.2% after rising 8.3% in August.
“Anybody who says (Fed could) pivot is wishful thinking right now. The Fed has got to get a handle on inflation right now,” said Arthur Laffer, president of Laffer Tengler Investments in Nashville, Tennessee.
“Soft landing is also becoming wishful thinking the more they raise rates. We’re going to have a really soft, maybe even negative fourth quarter.”
Following the data, fed funds futures have priced in a 13% chance of a 100-bps rate hike.
The dollar rose as high as 147.57 yen, the highest since August 1998. It was last up 0.4% at 147.49 yen.
Traders remained on the lookout for Japanese intervention to prop up a struggling yen. Officials have reiterated they stand ready to take appropriate steps to counter excessive currency moves, though whether they wish to defend particular levels remains unclear.
The greenback also soared against the Swiss franc, hitting its highest since May 2019. The buck was last up nearly 1% at 1.0068 francs.
The dollar also gained against the euro, which slid to a two-week low. The euro was last down 0.6% at $0.9659.
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Currency bid prices at 9:21AM (1321 GMT)
Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid
Previous Change
Session
Dollar index 113.5100 113.2300 +0.27% 18.656% +113.9200 +112.6100
Euro/Dollar $0.9665 $0.9702 -0.35% -14.96% +$0.9753 +$0.9632
Dollar/Yen 147.0550 146.9200 +0.09% +27.73% +147.6550 +146.4550
Euro/Yen 142.18 142.54 -0.25% +9.10% +143.0200 +141.8200
Dollar/Swiss 1.0054 0.9976 +0.80% +10.23% +1.0073 +0.9961
Sterling/Dollar $1.1199 $1.1099 +0.92% -17.18% +$1.1297 +$1.1061
Dollar/Canadian 1.3949 1.3819 +0.87% +10.25% +1.3977 +1.3778
Aussie/Dollar $0.6198 $0.6278 -1.29% -14.75% +$0.6299 +$0.6170
Euro/Swiss 0.9719 0.9679 +0.41% -6.27% +0.9739 +0.9675
Euro/Sterling 0.8632 0.8740 -1.24% +2.76% +0.8767 +0.8615
NZ $0.5537 $0.5608 -1.37% -19.20% +$0.5639 +$0.5512
Dollar/Dollar
Dollar/Norway 10.8230 10.7595 +0.82% +23.14% +10.8580 +10.6165
Euro/Norway 10.4732 10.4364 +0.35% +4.59% +10.4786 +10.3430
Dollar/Sweden 11.4306 11.3353 +0.48% +26.75% +11.4777 +11.2693
Euro/Sweden 11.0506 10.9981 +0.48% +7.98% +11.0648 +10.9880
(Reporting by Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss; Additional reporting by Medha Singh in Bengalaru; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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