* Dollar index rooted below 100; down 3% in July
* Euro scales fresh 16 month peak, best week since Nov
* Yen set for best week vs dollar since Jan
* Aussie flat after new RBA governor announcement

By Ankur Banerjee
       SINGAPORE, July 14 (Reuters) - The dollar hovered at
15-month lows on Friday and was set for its worst week since
November as markets wagered the Federal Reserve was close to the
end of its rate hike cycle as inflation eases. 
        The dollar index, which measures the U.S.
currency against six major rivals, fell 0.114% to 99.649, having
touched a fresh 15-month low of 99.574 earlier in the session.
The index is down 2.5% for the week, its worst weekly run in
eight months. 
  
        Investors have been betting on a 
    turn in the dollar
     for months, with short positions more than doubling over
the month to July 7, according to data from Commodity Futures
Trading Commission, although they remain far off the levels in
2021. 
  
    U.S. producer prices barely rose in June and the annual
increase in producer inflation was the smallest in nearly three
years, data showed on Thursday, a day after data showed consumer
prices rose modestly last month.
    "Markets are generally pretty pleasant with the lower
inflation data, because lower inflation together with the still
resilient labour market supports the narrative of a soft landing
in the U.S. economy," said Carol Kong, currency strategist at
Commonwealth Bank Of Australia in Sydney.
    "But we still maintain our view that the U.S. will enter a
recession later this year because of the impact of past and
potentially future interest rate hikes."
    Markets are still pricing in a 92% chance of a 25 basis
point hike from the Fed later this month, CME FedWatch tool
showed, but no more for the rest of the year. 
    Data on Thursday also showed that the number of Americans
filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell
last week, indicating that the labour market remains tight even
as job growth is slowing.  
    Fed officials remain cautious, with Federal Reserve Governor
Christopher Waller saying he's not ready to call an all clear on
U.S. inflation and favours more rate rises this year.
        Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy at AMP
Capital, said the Fed is still likely to hike another 25 bps
this month on concerns that services inflation remain too high
and worries that stopping too early when the labour market is
still tight could see inflation reignite. 
  
        "But that may be it. U.S. inflation also led inflation
in other countries on the way up so its decline augurs well for
other countries".
  
    Meanwhile, the Australian dollar was flat after
Michele Bullock was appointed head of Australia's central bank
on Friday, becoming its first female governor as it undertakes a
sweeping reorganisation.
    The euro touched a fresh 16-month peak of $1.1243
in Asian hours before easing to $1.1235, while sterling
last fetched $1.3140, up 0.05% on the day. The pound broke above
$1.30 on Thursday for the first time since April 2022. 
    The Japanese yen strengthened 0.29% to 137.65 per
dollar and is on course for its best week against the dollar
since January. 
        It touched a fresh two-month peak of 137.245 earlier in
the session and has swiftly moved away from the 145 per dollar
level it briefly broke past last month that spurred worries of
an intervention from the Japanese authorities. 
  
    The Bank of Japan is caught in a dilemma with growing
prospects of sustained inflation heightening the case for an
early tweak to its yield control policy, despite Governor Kazuo
Ueda's reassurances he would "patiently" maintain massive
stimulus.
    The first test will come at the central bank's policy
meeting on July 27-28, when the board is likely to revise up its
inflation forecasts and signal its conviction that a
demand-driven rise in prices backed by wage growth is taking
hold.
    In cryptocurrencies, the XRP token eased 4% in early
Asian hours to trade at $0.7794 after surging 76% on Thursday.
    A U.S. judge ruled that Ripple Labs did not violate federal
securities law by selling its XRP token on public exchanges.
    The XRP token eased 4% in early Asian hours to trade
at $0.7794 after surging 76% on Thursday.
    
        ========================================================
    Currency bid prices at 0521 GMT
 Description      RIC         Last           U.S. Close  Pct Change     YTD Pct     High Bid    Low Bid
                                              Previous                   Change                 
                                              Session                                           
 Euro/Dollar                  $1.1232        $1.1227     +0.05%         +4.83%      +1.1243     +1.1213
 Dollar/Yen                   137.6500       138.0150    -0.23%         +4.92%      +138.1000   +137.3800
 Euro/Yen                                                                                     
 Dollar/Swiss                 0.8576         0.8588      -0.20%         -7.32%      +0.8594     +0.8570
 Sterling/Dollar              1.3126         1.3134      +0.05%         +8.65%      +1.3142     +1.3117
 Dollar/Canadian              1.3103         1.3109      -0.06%         -3.31%      +1.3115     +1.3093
 Aussie/Dollar                0.6888         0.6890      -0.05%         +1.02%      +0.6895     +0.6876
 NZ                           0.6399         0.6393      +0.09%         +0.78%      +0.6412     +0.6387
 Dollar/Dollar                                                                                  
                                                                                                
    
All spots
Tokyo spots
Europe spots 
Volatilities 
Tokyo Forex market info from BOJ 

    
 (Reporting by Ankur Banerjee in Singapore; Editing by
Jacqueline Wong and Kim Coghill)