Dollar rallies as US shutdown drags on, weighing on confidence

The US dollar rose to its strongest in more than two months in early Asian trading on Wednesday as risks around the US government shutdown intensified, sparking fresh investor worries and boosting demand for safe-haven assets. The dollar index which measures the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.3% to as much as 98.91, its highest since Aug 5, as US President Donald Trump threatened to carry out mass firings of federal workers during the standoff. "With no resolution to the government shutdown in sight, sentiment in financial markets deteriorated," analysts from Westpac wrote in a research report. With the shutdown entering its second week, the probability of an end to the shutdown within the next week...