By Gregor Stuart Hunter
SINGAPORE (Reuters) -The U.S. dollar made a limp recovery in early Asian trade after days of selling, ahead of the U.S. markets reopening later on Tuesday after the Labor Day holiday.
The dollar index was last up 0.1% at 97.709, having touched its lowest on Monday since 28 July after five consecutive days of loss, as investors sought alternative havens such as gold where prices traded just shy of record levels.
Traders have sold the greenback as U.S. President Donald Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve, including his decision to remove Governor Lisa Cook, raise fear that the White House is undermining the central bank’s independence at a time when the case to begin cutting interest rates is far from clear.
“The Fed could be ominously poised to start its rate-cutting cycle,” said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone Group in Melbourne. “People see the attraction of being in gold.”
Bullion was on track to notch a sixth day of gain after reaching its highest price since 21 April on Monday. It was last up 0.2% at $3,482.55 a troy ounce whereas silver retreated 1.2% after reaching a 14-year high.
Against the yen, the dollar was 0.1% stronger at 147.33 yen, remaining in the trading channel it has sat in since the start of August.
U.S. economic data for August will be in focus later this week as market watchers try to ascertain the extent to which Trump’s policies are affecting industrial activity and the labour market. Data due include ISM’s manufacturing and services purchasing managers’ indices and the non-farm payrolls report.
The euro edged lower, last off 0.03% at $1.1707 so far in Asia, after data released on Monday showed the HCOB euro zone manufacturing PMI expanded in August for the first time in three years. Consumer price data for the same month is due later on Tuesday.
The Australian dollar paused for breath after five days of gain, last trading down 0.1% at $0.6549, near its highest in more than two weeks.
The kiwi traded flat at $0.5903 after a three-day winning streak, which has pushed the currency to a two-week high.
Sterling traded at $1.3539, down 0.1% so far on the day, retreating from a two-week high reached on Monday.
(Reporting by Gregor Stuart Hunter; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
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