The dollar gave a little ground to riskier Asian currencies on Thursday, as investors hoped the Sino-U.S. trade deal could herald warmer relations between the world’s two biggest economies and help to revive global growth.

Beijing and Washington touted the Phase 1 deal, signed overnight at the White House, as a step forward.

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said further Phase 2 discussions had already begun as negotiators work to resolve differences.

That helped the trade-exposed Australian and New Zealand dollars to book modest gains, while the safe-haven Japanese yen softened slightly.

The beaten-up kiwi led gains in major currencies, rising 0.3% to $0.6635, while the Aussie tacked on 0.1% to its highest for the week at $0.6919.

The Chinese yuan, the most sensitive currency to the U.S.-China trade relationship, headed back towards a six-month peak hit on Tuesday, adding 0.1% to 6.8860 per dollar in offshore trade.

The greenback was also marginally lower against the euro and pound, nursing overnight losses. Against a basket of currencies the dollar sat at 97.195.

The safe-haven Swiss franc’s overnight rally to a 15-month high of 0.9680 per dollar - close to where it held in early Asian trade - points to the level of caution.

Source : Reuters