U.S. dollar jumps as euro, yen drop

NEW YORK, April 28 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. dollar appreciated noticeably in late trading on Thursday amid weakness in the euro and the Japanese yen.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, increased 0.65 percent at 103.6240.

The euro, the largest component of the index, continued to weaken, amid growing concerns about a deeper economic slowdown in the region.

The Japanese yen retreated after the Bank of Japan on Thursday left its ultra-easy monetary policy unchanged.

In late New York trading, the euro fell to 1.0509 U.S. dollars from 1.0563 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound decreased to 1.2462 dollars from 1.2541 U.S. dollars in the previous session. The Australian dollar decreased to 0.7095 U.S. dollar from 0.7121 dollar.

The U.S. dollar bought 130.88 Japanese yen, higher than 128.31 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar rose to 0.9719 Swiss franc from 0.9683 Swiss franc, and it fell to 1.2806 Canadian dollars from 1.2832 Canadian dollars.

The U.S. dollar's strength has been broad-based lately, as safe-haven demand increased amid global growth concerns.

"While we have raised our forecasts to reflect the prospect of additional USD strength in the coming weeks, we wouldn't rule out an overshooting of these targets, and we continue to advise investors to stay long the greenback," Mark Haefele, chief investment officer at UBS Global Wealth Management, said Thursday in a note.