Dollar dips vs yen after US yields pull away from highs

TOKYO: The dollar dipped against the yen on Monday, edging lower down after U.S. Treasury yields dipped on mixed economic data.

Trading was subdued with many key markets shut on Monday for the Christmas holidays.

The greenback was down 0.2 percent at 117.300 yen. The euro was steady at $1.0457.

Currencies took stock of the U.S. debt market, which saw the benchmark 10-year note yield end lower on Friday.

The yield pulled back from 27-month peaks scaled mid-month following Friday's release of U.S. economic indicators that included strong housing and consumer confidence data but also numbers that pointed to slower household income.

"The currency market is likely to lack incentives as major markets in Asia, Europe and North America will be closed. That said, dollar/yen risks drifting below 117 on caution towards the Trump administration's protectionist policies," said Masafumi Yamamoto, chief currency strategist at Mizuho Securities in Tokyo.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump last week named economist Peter Navarro, known as a China hawk, to head a newly formed White House National Trade Council.

The Australian dollar was flat at $0.7178 after dipping to $0.7160 on Friday, its lowest since May, following a media report saying Chinese President Xi Jinping was open to growth China's economy falling below 6.5 percent.

Australia is sensitive to the economic prospects of China, its major trading partner.