Dollar weakens on black market

Unofficial exchange points sold the greenback at VND23,610, down 0.04% from Wednesday.

Techcombank lowered its rate by 0.04% to VND23,670.

Other banks kept the exchange rate stable.

Vietcombank sold the dollar at VND23,680, and Eximbank VND23,670.

Eximbank kept the greenback unchanged at VND23,670.

The State Bank of Vietnam raised its reference rate by 0.02% to VND23,732.

The dollar has dropped against the dong by 0.21% since the beginning of the year.

Globally the dollar languished near a one-month low against a basket of currencies on Thursday, after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stuck to his usual messaging at his semi-annual testimony, offering little room for surprise, Reuters reported.

Sterling was perched near a one-year high ahead of the Bank of England’s (BoE) interest rate decision later in the day, with Wednesday’s hot inflation report likely to keep policymakers on their toes.

In remarks to lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Powell said further U.S. rate increases are “a pretty good guess” of where the Fed is heading if the economy continues in its current direction. Those comments were in line with what the central bank said at its policy meeting last week.

That sent the greenback down nearly 0.5% against a basket of six major peers in the previous session. The U.S. dollar index last stood at 102.05 in early Asia trade, not far from its recent five-week low of 102.00.

The euro rose to a more than one-month high of $1.09925, extending Wednesday’s 0.65% jump.