U.S. Dollar Index

A measure of the value of the U.S. dollar relative to majority of its most significant trading partners. This index is similar to other trade-weighted indexes, which also use the exchange rates from the same major currencies.

Investopedia Says:
Currently, this index is calculated by factoring in the exchange rates of six major world currencies: the euro, Japanese yen, Canadian dollar, British pound, Swedish krona and Swiss franc. This index started in 1973 with a base of 100 and is relative to this base. This means that a value of 120 would suggest that the U.S. dollar experienced a 20% increase in value over the time period.

It is possible to incorporate futures or options strategies on the USDX. These financial products currently trade on the New York Board Of Trade.

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The US Dollar Index (USDX) is an index (or measure) of the value of the United States dollar relative to a basket of foreign currencies.

It is a weighted geometric mean of the dollar's value compared only with

• Euro (EUR), 58.6% weight
• Japanese Yen (JPY) 12.6% weight
• Pound sterling (GBP), 11.9% weight
• Canadian dollar (CAD), 9.1% weight
• Swedish krona (SEK), 4.2% weight and
• Swiss franc (CHF) 3.6% weight

USDX goes up when the US dollar gains "strength" (value) when compared to other currencies.

USDX started in March 1973, soon after the dismantling of the Bretton Woods system. At its start, the value of the US Dollar Index was 100.000. It has since traded as high as 148.1244 in February 1985, and as low as 70.698 on March 16, 2008.

The makeup of the "basket" has been altered only once, when several European currencies were subsumed by the Euro at the start of 1999.

USDX is updated whenever US Dollar markets are open, which is from Sunday evening New York time (early Monday morning Asia time) for 24 hours a day to late Friday afternoon New York time.

USDX can be traded as a futures contract on the IntercontinentalExchange (ICE). It is also available in exchange traded funds (ETFs), options and mutual funds.

See also

• Trade Weighted US dollar Index
• Special drawing right

External links

• USDX Quotes

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