US dollar declines after Fed statement

New York: The US dollar decreased against other major currencies as investors were digesting the latest Federal Reserve statement.

In the statement released on Wednesday after Fed's two-day policy meeting, the US central bank decided to keep its federal funds rate unchanged amid recent weak economic data and tepid inflation, Xinhua news agency reported.

"The Committee judges that the case for an increase in the federal funds rate has strengthened but decided, for the time being, to wait for further evidence of continued progress toward its objectives," said the statement.

In late New York trading on Wednesday, the euro rose to $1.1173 from $1.1161 of the previous session, and the British pound rose to $1.2998 from $1.2975. The Australian dollar climbed to $0.7600 from $0.7550.

The dollar bought 100.59 Japanese yen, lower than 101.83 yen in the previous session. The dollar dipped to 0.9759 Swiss francs from 0.9790 Swiss francs, and it inched down to 1.3159 Canadian dollars from 1.3213 Canadian dollars. 

The Fed also said that near-term risks to the US economic outlook "appear roughly balanced", a sign that the central bank could raise rates by the end of this year.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major currencies, was down 0.14 per cent at 95.881 in late trading.