Investing.com - The US dollar rose Wednesday after the latest inflation release pointed to underlying inflationary pressures, potentially delaying further interst rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
At 09:45 ET (14:45 GMT), the Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, traded 0.3% to 108.175, bouncing after recording some overnight losses.
Dollar rises after strong US CPI
U.S. consumer prices rose by more than expected in January, pointing to lingering inflationary pressures in the world’s largest economy.
Headline consumer prices increased by 3.0% in the twelve months to January, above expectations that the reading would match December’s pace of 2.9%, according to Labor Department data on Wednesday. Month-on-month, the gauge unexpectedly accelerated to 0.5%, up from 0.4% in the prior month and faster than economists’ expectations of 0.3%.
The so-called core measure, which strips out volatile items like food and fuel, rose by 3.3% year-over-year, compared to 3.2% in December and estimates of 3.1%. The monthly metric ticked up by 0.4%, versus 0.2% in the previous month and projections of 0.3%.
The numbers are the latest indication that a recent slowdown in price gains has stalled at a level above the Fed’s stated 2% target.
This week, Fed Chair Jerome Powell told a Congressional committee in a testimony that stubborn above-goal inflation contributed to policymakers’ decision in January to push pause on a series of rate cuts that stretched back into 2024 and signal a wait-and-see attitude to further borrowing cost drawdowns.
"We know that reducing policy restraint too fast or too much could hinder progress on inflation," Powell said, echoing comments he made after the Fed kept interest rates steady at a range of 4.25% to 4.5% last month.
This will be the last inflation reading before any direct impact from President Donald Trump’s tariff measures, which went into effect this month.
Trump’s policies, including higher tariffs, are widely seen as potentially fueling inflation in the US, which could also keep the Federal Reserve from easing monetary policy further any time soon.
Elsewhere, Jerome Powell appeared before the Senate on Tuesday, as part of his two-day testimony on Capitol Hill - he will appear before the House Financial Services Committee later Wednesday.
In his prepared testimony Tuesday, the Fed chairman reiterated that the Federal Reserve does “not need to be in a hurry to adjust our policy stance.”
"Hard to be optimistic" over euro
In Europe, EUR/USD traded 0.2% higher to 1.0344, retreating back towards last week’s more than two-year low, not helped by data showing Italian industrial production fell a hefty 3.1% on the month in December.
“Frankly, it’s hard to see such optimism coming through for the euro today. Growth remains poor, the fiscal cavalry remains in its barracks and the ECB may well be cutting by another 100bp this year to keep rate spreads wide,” said ING.
“That is why, if we do see any short-term recovery in EUR/USD to say the 1.0450 area, it may well peter out there.”
GBP/USD fell 0.3% to 1.2401, after bouncing on Tuesday in the wake of the sharp losses that followed the Bank of England cutting interest rates last week.
Yen falls sharply
In Asia, USD/JPY climbed 1.2% to 154.33, with the Japanese yen weakening sharply after hitting a near two-month high last week.
Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said the central bank will continue to target its 2% inflation target, although he struck a slightly less hawkish tone than seen in recent comments.
Ueda also flagged uncertainty over U.S. policies under Trump, and that the BOJ was waiting to gauge the economic impacts of the policies of the new U.S. president.
USD/CNY edged higher to 7.3100, keeping in a tight range during the session.