Asian session review: the US dollar consolidated against major currencies

During today's Asian trading, the US dollar was little changed against the euro and the yen on expectations for a two-day meeting of the FOMC, the results of which will be announced tomorrow.

The ICE index, which tracks the dollar's performance against six currencies (the euro, swiss franc, yen, canadian dollar, pound sterling and swedish krona), rose 0.01%.

There is no consensus among economists on what decisions the Fed will make this week.

"The only thing that seems to be in no doubt about this week's FOMC meeting is that the interest rate range on federal loan funds is maintained," said Richard Moody, chief economist at Regions Financial Corp.

The pound rose slightly against the dollar. Yesterday, European media reported, citing EU diplomats, that some progress has been made in negotiations with London, but there is still an impasse on the division of fisheries.

On the same day, the EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, told reporters in Brussels that it is still possible to agree a deal on the UK-EU relationship after Brexit, and work on this is continuing.

The Chinese yuan was almost unchanged against the US dollar, despite the data on China. Retail sales in China in November increased by 5% compared to the same month last year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China. Retail sales rose for the fourth month in a row in November, with the pick-up being the highest in eleven months, as consumer demand continues to recover from the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The volume of industrial production in China last month increased by 7% in annual terms - the highest since March last year.