Investing.com - The dollar pulled away from three-and-a-half year highs against the yen on Tuesday, while the pound fell to fresh two-and-a-half year lows after weak U.K. manufacturing output data reinforced fears over a triple-dip recession.
During U.S. morning trade, the dollar hit its highest level since June 2010 against the pound, with GBP/USD down 0.31% to 1.4867 after data showed that manufacturing output in the U.K. fell sharply in January.
The Office for National Statistics said that manufacturing production dropped 1.5% in January, missing expectations for a 0.1% increase.
The ONS said industrial output also missed forecasts for 0.1% increase, falling 1.2% in January.
Elsewhere, the dollar turned lower against the yen, with USD/JPY down 0.42% to 95.88, from a session high of 96.72, the pair's highest level since August 2009.
The yen touched fresh lows against the dollar earlier after reports in the Japanese media suggested that Bank of Japan governor nominee Haruhiko Kuroda could begin to implement fresh monetary easing steps after he takes office next week and may not wait for the bank's next policy meeting in early April.
On Monday, Kuroda said he would do "whatever is needed" to beat deflation and achieve the government's 2.0% inflation target. The comments came during a second parliamentary confirmation hearing in Japan's upper house.
Meanwhile, Tuesday's minutes of the BoJ's February meeting showed that some policymakers said bond purchases could be considered as an option for further monetary easing.
The dollar was higher against the euro, with EUR/USD losing 0.22% to trade at 1.3017.
Sentiment on the single currency remained fragile amid concerns over the economic outlook for the euro zone, while worries over ongoing political uncertainty in Italy also weighed.
The greenback was almost unchanged against the Swiss franc with USD/CHF dipping 0.01% to 0.9473.
The greenback was mixed against its Canadian, Australian and New Zealand counterparts, with USD/CAD inching up 0.06% to 1.0263, AUD/USD climbing 0.30% to 1.0310 and NZD/USD down 0.36% to 0.8250.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, edged up 0.12% to 82.91.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
