The dollar was above the 80 yen mark, fetching 80.02 yen in afternoon Tokyo trade, up from 79.78 yen in New York late Wednesday.
The euro bought $1.2966 and 103.75 yen from $1.2958 and 103.39 yen.
The jump came after official data Thursday showed China's manufacturing activity returned to expansion in October for the first time in three months, while a closely watched private survey hit an eight-month high.
China's purchasing managers' index (PMI) stood at 50.2 last month, up from 49.8 in September, according to the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing and the National Bureau of Statistics.
A PMI reading above 50 indicates expansion.
Separately, a PMI from HSBC also showed a pick-up to 49.5 in October from 47.9 in September, which is still a contraction but represents another rise, adding to hopes the Chinese economy is emerging from a drawn-out slowdown.
Traders are now looking forward to the release on Friday of October's jobs figures in the United States, the last before the presidential election on Tuesday, for clues to the state of the economy.
Traders were eyeing new developments in Europe's long-running debt crisis, with Greece on Wednesday unveiling a tough new austerity budget designed to appease its international creditors.