Investing.com - The dollar was slightly higher against a basket of the other major currencies on Wednesday as markets awaited updates on the appointment of a new Federal Reserve leader and the progress of U.S. tax reforms.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, edged up 0.1% to 93.45 by 08:48 AM ET (12:48 PM GMT).
U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he will soon choose a Federal Reserve head, having narrowed his search to five finalists. He is expected to make a decision before his trip to Asia, which begins November 3.
The shortlist includes current Fed Chair Janet Yellen, who is due to meet with Trump on Thursday; Fed governor Jerome Powell; former Fed governor Kevin Warsh; Trump's top economic adviser Gary Cohn and Stanford University economist John Taylor.
The dollar has been buoyed in recent sessions by speculation that Trump could pick a more hawkish candidate than Yellen, whose term is due to end in February.
Investors were also awaiting further news on negotiations over the new U.S. tax plan.
The dollar showed little reaction to data showing that U.S. housing starts fell to a one-year low on September amid disruption from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
The dollar pushed higher against the yen, with USD/JPY rising 0.62% to 112.89.
The euro was little changed against the greenback, with EUR/USD last at 1.1765.
Sterling was lower, with GBP/USD sliding 0.18% to 1.3164 after the latest UK jobs report showed that wage growth is still lagging behind inflation, tempering expectations for an interest rate hike by the Bank of England.
The pound was also lower against the euro, with EUR/GBP rising 0.16% to 0.8935.