Early trade in New York: Dollar rallies; bitcoin pulls back

NEW YORK: The dollar gained on Friday after several days of losses this week, as risk appetite soured with stocks and some commodity prices lower, while investors also consolidated gains made on other currencies ahead of a long weekend in US markets.

Financial markets are closed on Monday for Presidents' Day.

"We're seeing the consolidation that we expected earlier in the week," said Erik Bregar, head of FX strategy, at Exchange Bank of Canada in Toronto. "Risk sentiment is still the predominant driver of the dollar right now."

Bitcoin, meanwhile, was down 2.2% on the day at $46,909, after hitting a record high of $49,000. It was on track for gains of roughly 20% in a milestone week marked by the endorsement of major firms such as Elon Musk's Tesla.

In mid-morning trading, the dollar index rose 0.2% to 90.621 after subdued volumes in Asia because of the Lunar New Year.

The dollar was up 0.3% against the yen at 105.04.

The euro fell 0.3% to $1.2091.

The British pound was little changed at $1.3822 against the dollar but was steady against the euro after data showed Britain's economy suffered a record slump in 2020 but grew in the final quarter. The Australian, New Zealand, and Canadian dollars all fell against the greenback as risk appetite ebbed.