Dollar under pressure on recession fears
Wednesday, 12 March 2008
TOKYO, March 11 (AFP): The dollar hovered close to eight-year lows against the yen in Asian trade today as traders avoided risks after a stream of bad news from credit markets, dealers said.
The dollar was changing hands at 101.77 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade against 101.73 late Monday in New York.
The dollar slipped to 101.42 yen in early trade, coming close to Friday's low of 101.40, which was the weakest since 2000.
The euro firmed to 1.5362 dollars from 1.5345 and to 156.46 from 156.11.
Investors shunned risky positions and rushed to safe-haven assets including commodities such as oil, gold and US Treasuries.
The US Federal Reserve is expected to cut its benchmark rate by at least 50 basis points at its March 18 meeting. Markets have also been rife with speculation about a possible emergency cut before that.
Further rate cuts are expected to keep the dollar under pressure as investors seek higher yields elsewhere.
The greenback was mixed against regional Asian currencies, hitting a two-year high of 980.6 against the South Korean won before easing back to 970.10 in afternoon trade.
The dollar edged up to 41.27 Philippine pesos in late Asian trade from 41.16 a day earlier and to 9,215 Indonesian rupiah from 9,113.
The greenback slipped to 30.59 Taiwan dollars from 30.66 while staying almost flat at 31.56 Thai baht and 1.3876 Singapore dollars.
The dollar was changing hands at 101.77 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade against 101.73 late Monday in New York.
The dollar slipped to 101.42 yen in early trade, coming close to Friday's low of 101.40, which was the weakest since 2000.
The euro firmed to 1.5362 dollars from 1.5345 and to 156.46 from 156.11.
Investors shunned risky positions and rushed to safe-haven assets including commodities such as oil, gold and US Treasuries.
The US Federal Reserve is expected to cut its benchmark rate by at least 50 basis points at its March 18 meeting. Markets have also been rife with speculation about a possible emergency cut before that.
Further rate cuts are expected to keep the dollar under pressure as investors seek higher yields elsewhere.
The greenback was mixed against regional Asian currencies, hitting a two-year high of 980.6 against the South Korean won before easing back to 970.10 in afternoon trade.
The dollar edged up to 41.27 Philippine pesos in late Asian trade from 41.16 a day earlier and to 9,215 Indonesian rupiah from 9,113.
The greenback slipped to 30.59 Taiwan dollars from 30.66 while staying almost flat at 31.56 Thai baht and 1.3876 Singapore dollars.