NEW YORK: The yen extended losses on Monday from a volatile session at the end of last week after the Bank of Japan (BoJ) loosened its grip on interest rates, but it remained on track for its first monthly gain against the dollar since March.
The dollar was little changed against a basket of major currencies before key US unemployment data at week’s end, while the euro strengthened after data showed economic growth nudged higher and inflation ticked lower.
US non-farm payrolls on Friday will be the first of several data points that will shape a Federal Reserve interest rate decision in late September. Before then, central bank leaders will attend the Fed’s Aug. 24-26 symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where structural shifts in the global economy will be in focus. The dollar index fell 0.03% when measured against six major currencies. But against the yen, the US currency rose 0.74% at 142.200 after fresh intervention by the BoJ on Monday.
The yen went into a tailspin on Friday as traders tried to determine the implications of the BoJ’s move to maintain ultra-low rates while making its bond yield curve control (YCC) policy more flexible and loosening its defense of a long-term rate cap. The Aussie was last up 1.2% at $0.6728, and the offshore yuan slipped 0.02% at 7.1474 per dollar, drawing some support from an announcement from China’s State Council on Monday on measures to restore and expand consumption in the automobile, real estate and services sector.
The dollar was headed for a monthly loss on the prospect that the Fed’s aggressive rate-hike cycle - a key driver of the dollar’s strength - could have come to an end with last week’s 25-basis-point increase.
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