FOREX-Dollar holds gains ahead of Fed policy signal, RBNZ decision

The dollar ​held steady at a two-week high ​early on Wednesday ahead ‌of a ​string of policy decisions from central banks, with the Federal Reserve expected to leave rates unchanged while signalling ‌whether a December move remains on the table.

Most of the greenback's peers were unmoved ahead of the Fed's decision. The euro was flat at $1.1129. The British pound was also ‌unchanged at $1.3307. Against the yen , the dollar was 0.1% firmer at ‌158.03 yen. The kiwi dollar was trading level at $0.5682 ahead of a decision from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ), at which it is widely expected to hike interest rates. Meanwhile, its Australian ⁠counterpart ​was 0.1% stronger ⁠at $0.7031 ahead of the release of CPI data for September.

Traders broadly expect no change in policy ⁠from the US central bank. Fed funds futures are pricing an implied 91% probability the Federal ​Open Market Committee will keep interest rates on hold, according to the ⁠CME Group's FedWatch tool. "The Fed doesn't need to hike today to move markets," said Chris Weston, ⁠head ​of research at Pepperstone Group Ltd in Melbourne. "It simply needs to change the perceived probability of hiking in December."

The dollar index, which measures the ⁠greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.3% to 102.40 on Tuesday, touching ⁠its highest level ⁠since October 14. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury bond was unchanged at 4.9967%. In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin was flat at $80,736.07, while ether ‌nudged ‌up 0.1% to $2,345.25.