NEW YORK, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. dollar index decreased on Tuesday following the news about the replacement of the country's secretary of state.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he decided to replace Secretary of State Rex Tillerson with CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) Director Mike Pompeo.
Tillerson's departure raised market concerns that the Trump administration will institute protectionist policies and be more aggressive in negotiating trade tariffs with other countries.
Analysts said historically tariffs led to weaker dollar during the presidencies of George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
On the economic front, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for all urban consumers increased 0.2 percent in February on a seasonally adjusted basis, in line with market consensus, the U.S. Labor Department reported Tuesday.
Over the last 12 months, the all items index rose 2.2 percent before seasonal adjustment.
The index for all items less food and energy increased 0.2 percent in February, and it rose 1.8 percent over the past 12 months, the same figure as the prior two months.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, fell 0.25 percent at 89.675 in late trading.
In late New York trading, the euro rose to 1.2397 dollars from 1.2336 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound rose to 1.3977 dollars from 1.3906 U.S. dollars in the previous session. The Australian dollar fell to 0.7867 dollar from 0.7877 dollar.
The U.S. dollar bought 106.64 Japanese yen, higher than 106.37 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar was down to 0.9439 Swiss franc from 0.9466 Swiss franc, and it was up to 1.2942 Canadian dollars from 1.2828 Canadian dollars. Enditem
