* Biden to give details of "trillions" in spending Thursday
* Many analysts still expect dollar to resume declines
* Graphic: World FX rates tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E
By Kevin Buckland
TOKYO, Jan 14 (Reuters) - The dollar extended its rebound
from near three-year lows versus major peers on Thursday,
supported by higher U.S. yields, as President-elect Joe Biden
prepared to outline his plans for massive fiscal
stimulus.
The dollar index held onto gains made on Wednesday in
early Asian trading as investors continued to unwind bearish
bets. The dollar has risen in four of the past five trading
sessions as the prospect of more stimulus has weighed on U.S.
government bonds, sending the benchmark Treasury yield above 1%
for the first time since March.
Bitcoin also held on to 10% gains made on
Wednesday as it rebounded after sliding almost $12,000 from an
all-time high of $42,000 hit last week.
Biden will give details on Thursday of a plan for
"trillions" of dollars in pandemic relief. The 10-year Treasury
yield ticked up after CNN reported the package will be around $2
trillion, adding support for the dollar.
However many analysts expect the currency's bounce to be
temporary, as a build up of bearish dollar positions are shaken
out.
Longer term, they expect more U.S. stimulus to support risk
sentiment, weighing on the greenback, which is traditionally
considered a safe-haven.
"I think positioning in risk assets is becoming a concern,
so there could be a squeeze in the dollar near-term," said
Shusuke Yamada, chief Japan FX strategist at Bank of America in
Tokyo.
"I am focusing on gradual dollar weakness in 2021."
FX speculators have been net short the dollar since
mid-March, as investors' surging appetite for riskier assets
hurt demand for the greenback.
The dollar index added 0.1% to 90.431 after gaining 0.3%
overnight. It fell as low as 89.206 on Jan. 6 for the first time
since March 2018.
The euro slipped 0.1% to $1.21405 after sliding
0.4% on Wednesday.
The greenback advanced 0.2% to 104.075 yen, adding
to a 0.1% rise previously.
Bitcoin was little changed at $37,420 on Thursday, up from
as low as $30,261.13 on Jan. 11.
Interest in the cryptocurrency has been soaring as
institutional investors began buying heavily, viewing it as both
an inflation hedge and as exposed to gains if it became more
widely adopted.
"That precipitous sell-off we saw recently, a lot of it was
driven by the futures markets," where positions became
overextended and the resulting margin calls put downward
pressure on the bitcoin price, said Seth Melamed, the
Tokyo-based Chief Operating Officer of cryptocurrency exchange
Liquid.
"On the spot markets, you just see this consistent drumbeat
of buying."
========================================================
Currency bid prices at 12:41PM (341 GMT)
Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid
Previous Change
Session
Euro/Dollar $1.2146 $1.2159 -0.10% -0.59% +1.2172 +1.2135
Dollar/Yen 104.0470 103.8850 +0.18% +0.76% +104.1850 +103.8150
Euro/Yen 126.39 126.28 +0.09% -0.42% +126.4900 +126.2300
Dollar/Swiss 0.8883 0.8875 +0.10% +0.41% +0.8892 +0.8870
Sterling/Dollar 1.3633 1.3637 -0.02% -0.20% +1.3652 +1.3620
Dollar/Canadian 1.2692 1.2701 -0.03% -0.29% +1.2705 +1.2685
Aussie/Dollar 0.7741 0.7734 +0.11% +0.65% +0.7754 +0.7729
NZ 0.7187 0.7175 +0.15% +0.07% +0.7195 +0.7173
Dollar/Dollar All spots
Tokyo spots
Europe spots
Volatilities
Tokyo Forex market info from BOJ
(Reporting by Kevin Buckland; Editing by Ana Nicolaci da Costa
& Simon Cameron-Moore)
