* Scandinavia FX, Aussie dollar give back gains to greenback
* Japanese yen slips against US dollar
* Sterling falls on Brexit worries
* Graphic: World FX rates in 2020 https://tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E
(Adds new comments, U.S. data, FX table, updates prices, changes byline, dateline; previous LONDON)
By Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss
NEW YORK, Nov 19 (Reuters) - The dollar rose for the first time in six days on Thursday, as investors
grew cautious about the persistent rise in coronavirus infections that forced localized shutdowns around
the world, with broad optimism about upcoming COVID-19 vaccines fading a bit.
The U.S. death toll from COVID-19 passed 250,000 on Wednesday as New York City's public school system,
the country's largest, halted in-person instruction, citing a jump in infection rates. In mid-morning trading, an index which tracks the dollar against a basket of currencies was up 0.1% at
92.576 =USD .
"The dollar's strength is a spillover from the New York public school closures and the S&P 500 falling
1% to the close, which created a risk-off theme," said Erik Bregar, head of FX strategy, at Exchange Bank
of Canada in Toronto.
The dollar was also caught between two opposing forces, with a safety bid supporting it while renewed
speculation over monetary easing to boost the economy held it back somewhat.
The euro slipped 0.2% against the dollar to $1.1830 EUR=EBS .
With fiscal stimulus plans falling by the wayside as President Donald Trump's refusal to concede
electoral defeat consumes lawmakers' attention, speculation is growing that the Federal Reserve may
further loosen monetary policy in December.
Two Fed officials on Wednesday held out the option of doing more, and Treasuries have rallied in
anticipation of a possible expansion of Fed bond buying. Still, the Scandinavian currencies and the Australian dollar -- beneficiaries of the dollar's recent
decline -- fell.
The Norwegian crown fell 0.5% against the U.S. dollar, which rose to 9.0350 NOK=D3 . The dollar also
gained against the Swedish crown, up 0.3% at 8.6311 SEK=D3 , while the Aussie dollar also fell 0.4% to
US$0.7273 AUD=D3 .
"It seems that market participants are confused. They don't know where to place more emphasis, on the
positive vaccine headlines or on the acceleration of the infections from the pandemic," said Charalambos
Pissouros, senior market analyst at JFD Group.
Pissouros said he was sticking to his guns, however, "that any declines in risk-linked assets are
likely to stay limited."
The dollar rose 0.2% against the yen to 103.965 yen JPY=EBS . The yen has gained 1.6% in the week
since Pfizer announced promising trial results on its COVID-19 vaccine.
The greenback showed little reaction though after data showed U.S. weekly jobless claims increased to
a seasonally-adjusted 742,000 for the week ended Nov. 14. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast
707,000 applications for the latest week. Elsewhere, sterling dipped 0.3% to $1.3226 GBP=D3 against the dollar after The Times newspaper
reported that European leaders will urge the European Commission to publish no-deal Brexit plans as the
year-end deadline approaches. Bitcoin BTC=BTSP rose 1.9% on Thursday to $18,126 not far from the all-time high of nearly $20,000
reached three years ago.
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Currency bid prices at 10:19AM (1519 GMT)
Description RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid
Previous Change
Session
Dollar index =USD 92.5510 92.4740 +0.10% +0.00% +92.7270 +92.4270
Euro/Dollar EUR=EBS $1.1834 $1.1854 -0.16% +5.56% +1.1854 +1.1817
Dollar/Yen JPY=D3 103.9250 103.8200 +0.17% -4.25% +104.2100 +103.7450
Euro/Yen EURJPY= 122.97 123.05 -0.07% +0.84% +123.2000 +122.8500
Dollar/Swiss CHF=EBS 0.9126 0.9112 +0.18% -5.67% +0.9139 +0.9106
Sterling/Dollar GBP=D3 1.3223 1.3268 -0.33% -0.29% +1.3268 +1.3198
Dollar/Canadian CAD=D3 1.3085 1.3085 +0.01% +0.73% +1.3122 +1.3077
Aussie/Dollar AUD=D3 0.7269 0.7306 -0.50% +3.60% +0.7305 +0.7255
Euro/Swiss EURCHF= 1.0798 1.0796 +0.02% -0.50% +1.0809 +1.0791
Euro/Sterling EURGBP= 0.8946 0.8931 +0.17% +5.82% +0.8963 +0.8924
NZ NZD=D3 0.6897 0.6923 -0.40% +2.47% +0.6924 +0.6879
Dollar/Dollar
Dollar/Norway NOK=D3 9.0315 9.0045 +0.48% +3.14% +9.0920 +9.0150
Euro/Norway EURNOK= 10.6880 10.6880 +0.00% +8.64% +10.7485 +10.6729
Dollar/Sweden SEK= 8.6351 8.5980 +0.34% -7.63% +8.6569 +8.5877
Euro/Sweden EURSEK= 10.2178 10.1835 +0.34% -2.40% +10.2345 +10.1787