TOKYO: Japan's yen edged down Thursday as a brief pick up in oil prices lifted sentiment, with markets cautiously eyeing a G20 finance chiefs and central bank governor meeting.
Investors are looking for signs central bankers plan to unleash more stimulus to boost a wobbly global economy, hit by a slowdown in China and a slump in crude, at the get-together in Shanghai from Friday.
In Tokyo, the dollar rose to 112.59 yen from 112.15 yen in New York, while the euro advanced to 124.19 yen from 123.46 yen in US trade.
The yen has soared this year as traders scooped up a currency widely seen as a safe bet in times of turmoil.
In other trading, the euro edged up to $1.1022 from $1.1008. Emerging currencies including the oil-linked Malaysian ringgit, Singapore dollar, Philippine peso and Thai baht rose against the US unit.
Stocks have had one of their worst starts to a year in living memory in 2016, while Bloomberg News said the regional MSCI Asia Pacific Index has been its most volatile in four years over the past month.
Despite hopes for a coordinated answer to the bloodbath in financial markets and slowing world growth, US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew warned G20 finance ministers will not deliver an "emergency response".
"Jack Lew downplayed expectations for any emergency response out of this weekend's G20 meeting," Jason Wong, a currency strategist at the Bank of New Zealand, wrote in a note to clients.
"It seems that the best the market can hope for is some strengthening of the pledge from countries not to engage in competitive currency devaluations."
The pound, meanwhile, bought $1.3943, edging up from $1.3926 in US trading as markets weigh the likelihood that Britain will vote to exit the European Union in a referendum this summer.
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