WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar turned weak against some of its major counterparts on Wednesday with investors weighing the effectiveness of existing vaccines against the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
A South African study showed that the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine could provide only a partial protection against the omicron variant.
There is a 'very large' drop in neutralisation of Omicron by the vaccine than the original virus, the lead researcher said.
The World Health Organization said that preliminary analysis suggested that the mutations present in the Omicron variant may reduce neutralising activity of antibodies resulting in reduced protection from natural immunity.
The dollar index dropped to a low of 95.85 and is currently hovering around 95.95, down more than 0.4% from the previous close.
Against the Euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1345, down nearly 0.7% from Tuesday's close.
The Pound Sterling is weaker against the greenback, fetching $1.3204 a unit, about 0.3% less than Tuesday evening's level of $1.3244.
The dollar is trading at 113.70 yen, strengthening from 113.57 yen.
Against the Aussie, the dollar is at 0.7170, easing from 0.7119.
The Swiss franc is at 0.9202 against the dollar, gaining from 0.9250.
The Loonie has weakened to 1.2651 against the dollar, losing ground from 1.2640. The Bank of Canada today held its key overnight interest rate at 0.25%. The bank has also maintained its guidance that the first increase could come as soon as April 2022.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2021 AFX News
