Dollar stronger in early afternoon

A softer greenback has boosted the local unit as the market continues to digest Federal Reserve comments.

The Australian dollar is stronger against a US dollar dented by signs the US Federal Reserve may not deliver an interest rate hike in September.

The US dollar weakened as the tone of the US Federal Reserve’s statement from its latest meeting provided no guarantee that the central bank would lift rates as expected in September.

At 1pm (AEST), the local unit was trading at US75.11 cents, up from US74.93c on Wednesday.

It came as the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index lifted at noon, driven 0.28 per cent higher to 5,555.3 points on the back of mining sector strength.

- AAP