The dollar rallied strongly against the yen, breaking the key 103 level after upbeat US data fueled speculation the Federal Reserve will consider cutting back on stimulus measures which have been weakening the dollar.
The University of Michigan consumer sentiment report was released on Friday, giving the best results since July 2007. The preliminary reading spiked up well beyond expectations to 83.7 from 76.4, easily beating the forecasted 77.9 points.
The index is important since financial confidence is a leading indicator of consumer spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity in the United States.
USDJPY surged after the data at 10am New York time to hit a high of 103.28 by late US trading, the highest level since October 2008.
After a raft of improved US data recently in various sectors of the American economy, especially in labour and housing, this gives optimism that growth is expected to show continued improvement.
The ICE dollar index rose to its highest level in almost three years.
The euro extended losses to a new six-week low against the broadly stronger dollar, slipping to $1.2795.
The Australian dollar fell as much as 1 percent to 97.10 US cents, the weakest level since June 2012.
The dollar rallied strongly against the yen, breaking the key 103 level after upbeat US data fueled speculation the Federal Reserve will consider cutting back on stimulus measures which have been weakening the dollar.
The University of Michigan consumer sentiment report was released on Friday, giving the best results since July 2007. The preliminary reading spiked up well beyond expectations to 83.7 from 76.4, easily beating the forecasted 77.9 points.
The index is important since financial confidence is a leading indicator of consumer spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity in the United States.
USDJPY surged after the data at 10am New York time to hit a high of 103.28 by late US trading, the highest level since October 2008.
After a raft of improved US data recently in various sectors of the American economy, especially in labour and housing, this gives optimism that growth is expected to show continued improvement.
The ICE dollar index rose to its highest level in almost three years.
The euro extended losses to a new six-week low against the broadly stronger dollar, slipping to $1.2795.
The Australian dollar fell as much as 1 percent to 97.10 US cents, the weakest level since June 2012.
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