Reuters

The dollar hoarded hefty gains on Wednesday after strong U.S. retail data put a Federal Reserve rate hike back on the agenda, while Asia stocks inched ahead as tensions over North Korea simmered down little.

The dollar edged slightly lower in early Asian trading on Wednesday but held most of its gains made after U.S. retail sales data suggested the economy continued to gain momentum in the third quarter and kept alive hopes for another Federal Reserve interest rate hike this year.

Oil prices rose early on Wednesday on a fall in U.S. crude inventories, although analysts said that markets were still being weighed down by general oversupply.

China purchased the most Treasuries in six years in June, vaulting past Japan as the largest overseas lender to the U.S. government, according to data released by the U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday.

The U.S. dollar and U.S. Treasury yields climbed on Tuesday after solid U.S. retail data and an easing in U.S.-North Korean rhetoric, but Wall Street was held down by weakness in retail stocks.

The Mexican peso weakened on Tuesday after news of the largest gain in U.S. retail sales in seven months, leading traders to rethink skepticism about a potential U.S. rate hike this year.

U.S. benchmark Treasury yields rose to one-week highs on Tuesday as investors pared low-risk bond holdings on signs of easing U.S.-North Korean tensions and on strong domestic retail sales and regional factory activity data.

Sterling tumbled to a 10-month low against the euro on Tuesday as weak inflation data and concerns about protracted negotiations with euro zone authorities prompted investors to pile negative bets against the British currency.

Gold fell sharply for a second day on Tuesday after better-than-expected U.S. economic data and a decrease in tensions over North Korea encouraged investors to buy riskier assets, boosting stocks, the U.S. dollar, and bond yields.

Oil prices fell on Tuesday, extending a heavy sell-off after a surge in the dollar and weighed down by signs of weaker demand in China, the world’s second-largest consumer.