NEW YORK, June 16 (Xinhua) — The U.S. dollar surged in late trading on Wednesday as market participants digested the Federal Reserve’s latest policy statement.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, increased 0.68 percent at 91.1540.

In late New York trading, the euro was down to 1.2018 U.S. dollars from 1.2124 dollars in the previous session, and the British pound was down to 1.4003 dollars from 1.4083 U.S. dollars in the previous session. The Australian dollar decreased to 0.7615 U.S. dollar from 0.7682 dollar.

The U.S. dollar bought 110.49 Japanese yen, higher than 110.09 Japanese yen of the previous session. The U.S. dollar was up to 0.9061 Swiss franc from 0.8984 Swiss franc, and it rose to 1.2266 Canadian dollars from 1.2191 Canadian dollars.

The U.S. central bank on Wednesday kept its benchmark interest rates unchanged at the record-low level of near zero, as the economic recovery continues amid growing concerns over inflation surge.

“Progress on vaccinations has reduced the spread of COVID-19 in the United States. Amid this progress and strong policy support, indicators of economic activity and employment have strengthened,” the Fed said in a statement after concluding its two-day policy meeting.

With inflation having run persistently below the 2-percent longer-run goal, the Federal Open Market Committee will aim to achieve inflation moderately above 2 percent for some time so that inflation averages 2 percent over time and longer-term inflation expectations remain well anchored at 2 percent, the Fed reiterated, acknowledging that inflation has risen, “largely reflecting transitory factors.”