FOREX-Dollar loses ground against peers after Fed cuts rates

NEW YORK, Dec 10 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar extended losses against major peers including the euro, Swiss franc, and Japanese yen on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates in a widely expected move.

The Fed's decision to lower the benchmark policy rate by a quarter of a percentage point to the 3.50%-3.75% range drew three dissents: Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee and Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid argued that the policy rate should be left unchanged, while Fed Governor Stephen Miran again advocated for a larger half-percentage-point reduction.

The greenback lost ground against peer currencies immediately after the Fed's announcement. The dollar weakened 0.58% against the Swiss franc CHF= to 0.801 and was last down 0.4% to 156.24 against the Japanese yen JPY=.

The euro EUR= was up 0.39% at $1.167. The dollar index =USD, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, fell 0.38% to 98.84.