New York, The US dollar index increased against other major currencies as investors digested the US decision to resume sanctions against Iran.
In late New York trading on Monday, the euro decreased to $1.1553 from $1.1579 in the previous session, and the British pound was down to $1.2943 from $1.3009 in the previous session, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Australian dollar fell to $0.7389 from $0.7404.
The US dollar bought 111.39 Japanese yen, higher than 111.23 Japanese yen of the previous session. The US dollar increased to 0.9963 Swiss franc from 0.9940 Swiss franc, and it rose to 1.3001 Canadian dollars from 1.2981 Canadian dollars.
The White House said in a statement on Monday that the US will reactivate a slew of sanctions on Iran’s financial and industrial sectors beginning on Tuesday.
The action, followed by another set of sanctions scheduled for November, will bring US sanctions against Iran to the level on par with those prior to a major multilateral nuclear deal reached in 2015.
The first batch of sanctions target Tehran’s purchase of US banknotes, trade in gold and other precious metals, as well as the use of graphite, coal, aluminium and steel in industrial processes.
Another round of sanctions, to be reinstalled in November, will be on Iran’s port, energy and shipping sectors, its petroleum-related transactions, and foreign transactions with the Central Bank of Iran, according to the statement.
Some analysts said that global uncertainties are dollar positive as the greenback is seen by some investors as a safe-heaven currency.
There was no major economic data due out on Monday.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, increased 0.22 per cent at 95.3546 in late trading.