The dollar was near a four-and-a-half-year top against the yen on Tuesday, after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell was reappointed for a second term, emboldening bets on higher U.S. interest rates.
At 114.8 yen the greenback is near last week's peak of 114.97, its highest since March 2017, having jumped 0.77% on Monday.
Currency markets have been mostly driven by market perceptions of the different paces at which global central banks reduce pandemic era stimulus and raise rates. "Meanwhile, virus suppression measures are being implemented in Europe again, making for a stark contrast," they added.The common currency has been hurt by the dovish tone coming out from the European Central Bank and more recently a resurgence in COVID-19 cases in Europe, which forced Austria back into a full lockdown on Monday and caused Germany to consider tighter restrictions.The strong dollar and slightly softer oil prices weighed on commodity currencies.
The Canadian dollar continued this month's slide. The dollar has gained 2.5% on the loonie in November and one dollar was last at 1.2692.
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