Today's Edition
TOKYO (REUTERS)
The dollar held its ground on Wednesday as investors awaited minutes from the Federal Reserve for signals on future rate cuts. The yen was steady after data showing a rebound in Japanese manufacturer sentiment and President Donald Trump announced the first tranche of mega-investments Tokyo is making in the US.
The kiwi dollar was the main mover in currency markets in the Asian morning, with sellers getting into the act after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand held pat on rates and said policy would need to remain accommodative.
The RBNZ's stance underscored the still-fragile state of the South Pacific nation's economy.
With many markets in Asia remaining closed for Lunar New Year holidays, investors were looking ahead to the Fed's readout of its last meeting and key US economic data for trading catalysts.
The Fed's Open Market Committee issues minutes from its January meeting later on Wednesday, while the Commerce Department on Friday will issue its first estimate for US gross domestic product for the fourth quarter.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, was little changed at 97.16 after a two-day advance. The euro slid 0.06% to $1.1846.
The yen held steady at 153.23 per dollar, and sterling weakened 0.07% to $1.3558, after a 0.5% slide in the previous session.
Data released earlier showed Japanese exports rose for a fifth consecutive month in January, while the Reuters Tankan poll also provided some cheer for a stuttering economy as confidence among the nation's manufacturers improved in February for the first time in three months.
The International Monetary Fund urged Japan to keep raising interest rates and avoid loosening fiscal policy further. The Trump administration announced three projects valued at $36 billion to be financed by Japan, the first of some $550 billion in projects Tokyo agreed to undertake in order to lower US tariffs.
The Australian dollar weakened 0.1% versus the greenback to $0.7076, as the kiwi slid 0.4% to $0.6016.
The RBNZ held its key rate unchanged at 2.25% in its first meeting chaired by Governor Anna Breman, with policymakers saying the monetary stance needs to stay accommodative to support the economic recovery.
