Yen rises in Asia on renewed risk aversion
Thursday, 16 October 2008
TOKYO, Oct 15 (AFP): The yen rose in Asia today as players refrained from risky bets after a global stock market rally lost steam amid concerns about the economic impact of the credit crunch.
The dollar slipped to 101.42 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade from 102.01 yen late Tuesday in New York. The euro fell to 137.86 yen from 139.05, and to 1.3571 dollars from 1.3618.
"Investors remain cautious, although panic selling (on global stock markets) seems to have subsided," said Mizuho Corporate Bank analyst Masaki Fukui.
Players bought the yen as the currency is seen as a relatively safe haven amid the financial crisis, dealers said.
The Japanese currency tends to rise in times of market turmoil as it has been heavily sold in the past to fund risky investments.
"Worries over banks' bankruptcies are gone, so there will be no panic yen- buying anymore," Shinkin Central Bank senior dealer Hiroshi Yoshida told Dow Jones Newswires.
"But players are pessimistic about the global economy ahead. The yen will likely appreciate gradually in the long-term," he said.
A Wall Street rally faded Tuesday as US authorities pushed forward with a plan to inject up to 250 billion dollars in capital into struggling banks.
Janet Yellen, the head of the San Francisco branch of the Federal Reserve, said that the United States "appears to be in a recession."
The dollar slipped to 101.42 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade from 102.01 yen late Tuesday in New York. The euro fell to 137.86 yen from 139.05, and to 1.3571 dollars from 1.3618.
"Investors remain cautious, although panic selling (on global stock markets) seems to have subsided," said Mizuho Corporate Bank analyst Masaki Fukui.
Players bought the yen as the currency is seen as a relatively safe haven amid the financial crisis, dealers said.
The Japanese currency tends to rise in times of market turmoil as it has been heavily sold in the past to fund risky investments.
"Worries over banks' bankruptcies are gone, so there will be no panic yen- buying anymore," Shinkin Central Bank senior dealer Hiroshi Yoshida told Dow Jones Newswires.
"But players are pessimistic about the global economy ahead. The yen will likely appreciate gradually in the long-term," he said.
A Wall Street rally faded Tuesday as US authorities pushed forward with a plan to inject up to 250 billion dollars in capital into struggling banks.
Janet Yellen, the head of the San Francisco branch of the Federal Reserve, said that the United States "appears to be in a recession."