The U.S. dollar held gains against major currencies today as investors looked to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy meeting for indications it could start rate hikes earlier or let bond yields rise further.

Against the yen, the greenback firmed 0.1% to 109.085 yen, hovering near nine-month highs hit this week. The euro was flat versus the dollar after declining in the past three sessions. The British pound was down about 0.1% at $1.3886 in Asian trading today.

The currency has come under pressure from profit-taking after it hit a near three-year high last month on the back of a fast vaccine roll-out. Commodity-linked currencies including the Australian dollar, the New Zealand dollar and the Canadian dollar eased slightly against the U.S. dollar, tracking weakness in commodity prices.

Sabrijo Mpele.