16 April 2001, 13:15 Asia FX Review: USD/JPY rose slightly, but 125.00 capped
By Masataka Nakamura
Tokyo, April 16 (BridgeNews) - The U.S. dollar and the euro traded
listlessly against the yen Monday as the Hong Kong and Sydney markets were
both closed for the Easter holidays. Both currencies initially rose
against the yen in the morning, helped by dollar demand from Japanese
players, but upward momentum soon waned, erasing earlier gains. Japanese
banks were good buyers of the dollar against the yen during the Tokyo
fixing. The euro/yen shadowed the dollar/yen movements.
Early in the session, the dollar/yen rose from 124.20 to 124.45, led by
Japanese names' buying. Then, the pair extended its rise to the 124.80
level, helped by demand through the Tokyo fixing.
Masakazu Bunno, assistant general manager in International Trading
Department at Sumitomo-Sakura Bank said that dollar demand through the
fixing, coupled with short-covering pressures, underpinned the U.S
currency early in the session.
Although the dollar/yen recouped some of the gains recorded early in
the session after the fixing, profit-taking selling pushed the pair down.
The Dollar/yen eased during light lunch-time trading Monday. At the
outset of the session, the Nikkei 225 stock index suddenly advanced more
than 100 points in 10 minutes, helped somewhat by a report that Japan's
Princess Masako may be pregnant
This movement in the stock market caused yen short-covering against the
dollar. However, in general dealers did not attach much significance to
the movement, as trading conditions were thin.
Masakazu Bunno, assistant general manager at International Trading
Department in Sumitomo-Sakura Bank said that the overall market lacked
direction.
In fact, the dollar/yen slightly firmed, after the Nikkei stock index
backed down after a buying early in the afternoon.
The euro/dollar moved little in the Far East on Monday. Few were
willing to trade euro/dollar because of thin conditions, with many markets
still closed.
Euro/yen flow was also limited in Monday's Asian session, contributing to
steady euro/dollar trade.
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