The US dollar is being affected by the possibility of a default as the standoff between Democrats and Republicans over raising the debt ceiling continues. The US dollar index, which measures the currency against a basket of six major peers, was at 102.39 after retreating from its five-month high. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that the country could reach its borrowing limit as soon as June 1. Senior FX strategist at Westpac, Sean Callow, warns that the US dollar price action has been "very messy". The potential for the dollar index is to drop, with Westpac seeing it dropping to around 101.05 in the short term.