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ECB set to keep rates steady at 1315 GMT

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Bank of England also expected to hold rates, decision due

1200

GMT

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Dollar-yuan little changed after Trump-Xi phone call

(Recasts, updates markets, adds quote, JGB auction results)

By Gregor Stuart Hunter

SINGAPORE, Feb 5 (Reuters) - The dollar climbed to a

two-week high on Thursday as fresh volatility gripped stocks and

precious metals, while traders counted down to rate decisions

from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England.

The U.S. dollar index, ‌which measures the greenback's

strength against a basket of six currencies, was last up 0.1% at

97.762, extending gains into a second day.

"There's a bit of risk aversion coming through," ​said Sim

Moh Siong, currency strategist at OCBC in Singapore. "When

there's risk aversion, the dollar tends to strengthen."

The dollar has regained some ‍strength this week and stocks

turned risk-off as financial markets assess U.S. corporate

earnings season, now halfway ⁠complete.

Gold and silver, which have ⁠become more volatile recently as

a result of leveraged buying and speculative flows, were rocked

by a fresh selloff on Thursday, which saw silver falling as much

as 16.6% to ‌a low of $73.41.

The Nasdaq Composite has fallen 2.9% during the past ​two

days, its biggest slide since October, with volatility triggered

by market bellwethers including Google parent Alphabet

, which reported aggressive spending plans on

Wednesday, and a rout in software stocks as they adapt to a new

era of ⁠generative AI.

Against the yen, the U.S. dollar was trading at

156.81 yen, ‍holding steady after ​an auction of 30-year Japanese

government bonds drew solid demand, while Japan's election

campaign entered its final stretch ahead of Sunday's poll.

The euro was last down 0.2% at $1.1790 ahead of the

ECB decision, where it is expected to keep ‍rates on hold.

Investors' attention will be focused on the post-policy press

conference to gauge the outlook for rates over the coming

months.

"The emphasis will likely be on higher uncertainty," with

only minor tweaks in communication, according to analysts from

Bank of America, who expect the ECB to hold rates later in the

day. "Our conviction in a March cut is not rock solid, but we

remain convinced of an easing bias from here."

The British pound was last down 0.2% at $1.3621

ahead of the BoE's policy decision, at which it is also expected

to ​remain on ‍hold.

As the Asian trading session began, Federal Reserve Governor

Lisa Cook said in a speech she is more concerned about stalled

progress on inflation than a weakening labour market, a strong

signal that she will not support another interest-rate ​cut until

tariff-induced price pressures begin to recede.

Fed funds futures are pricing an implied 88% probability

that the U.S. central bank will hold rates at its next two-day

meeting ending on March 18, though bets on a rate cut edged up

to 12% from 9.4% a day earlier, according to the CME Group's

FedWatch tool.

Against the offshore yuan, the U.S. dollar was last

flat at 6.9439 yuan following a phone call between U.S.

President Donald Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in

which they discussed trade, security issues and U.S. arms sales

to Taiwan.

Antipodean currencies, which often mirror global risk

appetite, saw their strength ​fade during the trading session as

investor confidence dimmed.

The Australian dollar fell 0.4% to $0.6968, giving up

earlier gains following the release of trade balance data which

was a little ahead of market estimates. The New Zealand dollar

was last down 0.3% at $0.5986.

Cryptocurrencies extended losses after a selloff, which saw

digital assets fall to the lowest since November ‍2024, with

bitcoin tumbling as much as 3.54% to $70,052.48, and

ether off 1.3% at $2,098.44.