2018.01.0202:13:00UTC+00Dollar Near 3-Month Lows at Start of 2018

The dollar wavered near a three-month low against a basket of major peers on Tuesday, as markets reopened at the beginning of 2018.

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was at 92.162. On Friday it had dropped to as low as 92.080, the lowest level since Sept. 22.

For the entirety of 2017, the index declined over 9.8 percent, the U.S. currency's worst annual performance since 2003.

The dollar weakened in 2017, partly due to economic growth accelerating outside the United States, as other countries' central banks moving towards tighter monetary policy, lessening the perceived divergence between the Federal Reserve and others.

The euro climbed 0.1 percent on the day at $1.2018, after having jumped 14 percent in 2017 for its best annual performance since 2003.

The common currency had gained 1.1 percent in the last week of 2017, pulling it back within sight of a 2-½ year high of $1.2092 set in September.

In addition to political factors like the Italian election in March, a key factor for the euro in 2018 is how the European Central Bank proceeds with tapering its massive monetary stimulus.

Bitcoin, the largest and best-known cryptocurrency, dropped 2.0 percent to about $13,175 on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange.

Bitcoin had surged in 2017, gaining over 1,300 percent for the year.