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2019.03.2016:30:00UTC+00U.S. Dollar Comes Under Pressure Following Fed Announcement

After showing a lack of direction earlier in the day, the value of the U.S. dollar came under pressure following the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement on Wednesday.

The U.S. dollar is trading at 110.63 yen compared to the 111.39 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1424 compared to yesterday's $1.1352.

The drop in the value of the greenback came after the Fed announced its widely expected decision to leave interest rates unchanged while also indicating the central bank no longer expected to raise rates this year.

The Fed decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 2-1/4 to 2-1/2 percent in support of its mandate of fostering maximum employment and price stability.

The central bank's forward projections also indicated interest rates are likely to remain unchanged for the remainder of the year.

The forecast for interest rates to be unchanged at the end of the current year compares to the December projections indicating two rate hikes.

The downward revision to the rate projections comes as the Fed noted data received since its January meeting points to a slowdown in economic growth from the solid rate seen in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Kevin Doran, chief investment officer at AJ Bell, accused the Fed of kowtowing to the stock markets and President Donald Trump, who has been harshly critical of Powell and the central bank for raising rates.

"Despite protestations to the contrary, it seems evident that the Fed is kowtowing to stock market reaction to the prospect of higher interest rates and increasing levels of political interference," Doran said.

"It is all too obvious that nothing of significance is likely to happen on rates until such time that the asset price inflation being stoked by the current economic backdrop seeps its way into 'real world' inflation on the high streets," he added. "Maybe we should cut out the middle-man and leave Trump to announce rates on Twitter?"

Looking ahead, trading in the currency markets on Thursday may be impacted by the Bank of England's monetary policy decision as well as U.S. reports on weekly jobless claims and leading economic indicators.

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