TOKYO: The yen weakened in Asian morning trade Thursday as the Bank of Japan (BoJ) wraps up a two-day meeting amid speculation over whether policymakers will launch further easing measures.
The Japanese currency was trading at 78.52 against the dollar, down slightly from 78.45 in New York late Wednesday, while it changed hands at 97.22 against the euro, from 96.99 in US trade.
The euro was stronger against the greenback at $1.2382 from $1.2363.
Markets were looking to the BoJ and whether it would adjust monetary policy as worries mount over recovery in the world's third-largest economy.
Tokyo has also voiced concerns about the high value of the yen and hinted at another round of currency intervention to tame the unit's rise.
The yen hit historic highs against the dollar late last year, and remains strong as traders see it as a safe-haven amid turmoil in Europe and a lumbering US economic recovery.
But a high yen is bad for Japan's exporters by making their products less competitive overseas.
On Thursday, China said its inflation rate hit a two-and-a-half-year low in July, while Australia reported that its unemployment rate stood at 5.2 percent last month, beating expectations.
The data "helps improve risk sentiment somewhat," Kengo Suzuki, forex strategist at Mizuho Securities in Tokyo, told Dow Jones Newswires.
Currency markets this week have been largely being driven by growing expectations that policymakers in the US and Europe will usher in further easing measures to boost their respective economies.
After a meeting last month, the BoJ said Japan's economy would grow slightly less than expected, but held off making major policy moves.
That decision surprised some analysts after a flurry of interest rate cuts by central banks in Europe, Asia and South America aimed at propping up a global economy that is showing signs of slowing.
With interest rates sitting at an ultra-low zero to 0.1 percent, the BoJ's main policy tool has been a 70 trillion yen ($891 billion) asset-purchase programme.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.