Dollar Weakens Against Yen, Swiss franc Amid Tariff Worries
The U.S. dollar weakened against the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc on Monday as markets grappled with trade tensions over tariffs and a probable U.S. economic slow-down, while the euro pared gains from last week.
Markets have been fixated on trade tensions after U.S. President Donald Trump slapped tariffs on top trading partners only to delay some of them for a month amid fears of a U.S. slow-down.
The dollar weakened 0.76% to 146.91 against the Japanese yen after trading as low as 146.625 on the session, its lowest since early October last year. Against the Swiss franc , the dollar weakened 0.06% to 0.879 - hitting its lowest level since early December.
The euro was 0.03% higher against the dollar at $1.083350 but hovered near its four-month high as the markets awaited details on the likely boost to European spending. The single currency notched its best week in 16 years last week.
European Union finance ministers will meet on Monday to explore funding options for defence. European countries have rushed to boost spending and maintain support for Ukraine after Trump froze U.S. military aid to Kyiv and raised doubts about Washington's commitment to European allies.
Traders are pricing in 75 basis points of cuts from the Fed this year, LSEG data showed, with a rate cut fully priced in for June. Investors will be eyeing U.S. inflation data due on Wednesday.
On currency futures markets, investors have slashed net long dollar positions to $15.3 billion from a nine-year high of $35.2 billion in January.
Data on Monday showed regular pay in Japan rose 3.1% in January following December's revised 2.6% increase and marking the biggest jump since 1992, though inflation at a two-year high meant real wages fell.
The Bank of Japan is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged at its policy review on March 18-19, though officials have repeatedly cited the need to gauge the sustainability of wage growth after the central bank's January rate hike.
Sumber : Reuters
