Dollar approaches its highest since 2009 after jobless claims

The dollar extended gains on Thursday after releasing the US jobless claims data and the Federal Reserve statements yesterday.

The US dollar Index rose 0.35% to trade around 89.36 at 14:04 GMT, compared with the entry levels 89.09.

The number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending December 12 fell by 6,000 to 289,000 from the previous week’s revised total of 295,000.

The dollar found support after the Fed said on Wednesday it would be “patient” before raising interest rates confirming the improvement of the US labor market.

Fed Chairman Janet Yellen said the Fed was unlikely to raise rates for the "next couple of meetings" indicating that a move in April is possible.

The dollar index traded close to its highest levels since 2009.        

USD/JPY pair traded around 119.19 compared with the entry levels 118.59.