Investing.com - The U.S. dollar extended gains to a one-and-a-half week high against other major counterparts on Tuesday, helped by the release of positive U.S. data and ongoing speculation over who will replace Janet Yellen at the head of the Federal Reserve next year.
The dollar found support after data showed that industrial and manufacturing production in the U.S. rose in line with expectations last month.
A separate report showed that U.S. import and export prices jumped higher than expected in September.
The greenback had already strengthened following reports on Monday that U.S. President Donald Trump was favoring Stanford economist John Taylor to replace Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen next year. Taylor is seen as more hawkish than current Yellen.
EUR/USD slid 0.42% to 1.1746, after data earlier showed that German economic sentiment rose much less than expected in October.
The pound was also weaker, with GBP/USD down 0.65% at 1.3167 after Bank of England Governor Mark Carney warned about the dangers of a no-deal Brexit on Tuesday.
He said the bank had prepared for a “worst-case” scenario and noted British firms have become “less confident about a smooth transition.”
Earlier Tuesday, data showed that U.K. inflation hit a five-and-a-half year high in September.
Elsewhere, USD/JPY added 0.11% to trade at 112.31, while USD/CHF gained 0.46% to 0.9800.
The Australian and New Zealand dollars were lower, with AUD/USD down 0.37% at 0.7824 and with NZD/USD shedding 0.20% to 0.7154.
Meanwhile, USD/CAD advanced 0.44% to trade at 1.2573.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.41% at 93.51 by 10:50 a.m. ET (14:50 GMT), its highest since October 6.