Summary Dollar fell against euro on the eve of Federal Reserve chief much-anticipated testimony to Congress.
NEW YORK (AFP) - The dollar firmed against most other major currencies except the euro Tuesday on the eve of Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke s much-anticipated testimony to Congress.
The euro rose to $1.2906 around 2100 GMT, up from $1.2884 at the same time late Monday.
The dollar strengthened against the Japanese currency, to 102.47 yen from 102.26 at the same time late Monday, while the euro also gained, buying 132.26 yen, up from 131.76.
The dollar s gains came ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke s testimony before the Joint Economic Committee on the US economic outlook Wednesday, which will be followed later in the day by the release of the Fed s minutes for its last monetary policy meeting.
Analysts will be poring over Bernanke s testimony and the Federal Open Market Committee minutes for signs of the Fed s intentions to wind down, or step up, its third round of quantitative easing (QE).
"We believe his monetary policy bias will be the main driver of dollar flows," said Kathy Lien of BK Asset Management.
"Bernanke s views will give us a good sense of whether the market s expectations for tapering QE are overblown.
"Based on the relentless rally in the US dollar over the past month, investors are pricing in a major change in Fed policy and Bernanke s comments could either support or end the dollar rally."
Under the QE program, the Fed is buying $85 billion of bonds a month to inject liquidity into the economy to support growth.
The dollar rose against the pound, which fetched $1.5154, down from $1.5258 late Monday.
The greenback firmed to 0.9697 Swiss franc from 0.9667 franc.
