Investing.com - The dollar remained at two-and-a-half year lows against the other major currencies on Tuesday, amid fresh geopolitical tensions and as Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's latest comments continued to weigh.
The yen and the Swiss franc were stronger, with USD/JPY down 0.58% at 108.62 and with USD/CHF tumbling 1.07% to trade at 0.9451.
Safe-haven demand strengthened after North Korea fired a missile that flew over northern Japan, in the latest act of provocation by Pyongyang.
Following the missile test, the U.S., Japan and South Korea asked for a United Nations Security Council meeting. According to diplomats, a meeting of the 15-member Security Council is scheduled to be held later Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the greenback remained under pressure after a speech by Fed Chair Janet Yellen at the Jackson Hole economic symposium on Friday made no reference to monetary policy, disappointing some investors who had hoped she would adopt a hawkish tone.
Investors were also cautious after Tropical Storm Harvey hit Houston, Texas, and many oil refineries in the U.S. Gulf Coast, sparking worries about the storm's impact on the U.S. economy.
EUR/USD was up 0.58% at 1.2047, its highest level since January 2015, boosted by hopes the European Central Bank will soon announce plans to taper its bond-buying stimulus program.
Though ECB President Mario Draghi gave no fresh monetary policy cues at the Jackson Hole summit, some investors interpreted his lack of comment on the recent strength of the euro as an indication that it would continue to climb.
Elsewhere, GBP/USD edged up 0.19% to 1.2959.
The Australian dollar was steady with AUD/USD at 0.7973, while NZD/USD gained 0.41% to 0.7287.
Meanwhile, USD/CAD slipped 0.24% to trade at 1.2478.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.51% at 91.70 by 08:20 a.m. ET (12:20 GMT), the lowest since January 2015.