Dollar steady as inflation data and central banks take focus

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -The dollar stabilised in early Asian trading hours on Thursday after an unexpected drop in U.S. factory-gate prices bolstered expectations the Federal Reserve will cut rates next week and traders awaited U.S. consumer price data due later in the day. The dollar index nudged upwards to 97.822, rising for a third consecutive day after the Producer Price Index for final demand fell 0.1% during August, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Wednesday. "The market has positioned for the Fed to ease in September and potentially ease three times this year," said Rodrigo Catril, currency strategist at National Australia Bank in Sydney.