Dollar Tad Lower Against Euro, Yen Amid Lack of Cues

 
   By Hiroyuki Kachi 
 

        The dollar was a tad lower against the euro and the yen in quiet Asian trade Wednesday, with investors reluctant to take strong positions amid a lack of fresh market-moving news.
        Around 0450 GMT, the euro was at $1.0927 from $1.0924 late Tuesday in New York, after briefly surmounting the $1.1 mark overnight.
        The dollar was at Y119.62, compared with Y119.74 in New York. Despite its weakening to as low as Y119.56 midday, the greenback's downside was well supported with dip buying kicking in from corporate investors linked to their commercial trade settlements ahead of the March 31 book closing.
        With adjustments away from a higher dollar trend seemingly coming to an end following the Federal Open Market Committee, the market is finally running short of incentives, said Shinichiro Kadota, vice president of research at Barclays in Tokyo.
        "The market moves are looking quite thin," said Mr. Kadota, adding that investors may find it difficult to make major plays until the release of closely watched U.S. jobs data early April or a major development in the Greek bailout negotiations.
        Later Wednesday, eurozone finance ministry officials will hold a teleconference to discuss progress on Greece's reform proposals and the possibility of allowing the cash-strapped country access to a lifeline of EUR1.2 billion.
        IG Securities market analyst Junichi Ishikawa says German data could provide the cue for the day.
        "The highlight in the market today is likely to be a euro movement against the dollar" after Germany's Ifo business climate index comes out, said Ishikawa.
        If the index is better than market consensus, and U.S. durable goods orders data come in below street forecasts, a possible uptick of the pair toward $1.1125, a technical retracement line, will come into view, he said.
        Mr. Ishikawa says technical charts indicate some hesitation among market participants to press ahead with dollar selling. But continued lackluster U.S. economic data and the dollar's resultant falloff against broader currencies "may change the unsettled mood, providing more conviction," to sell the U.S. currency.
        The euro was at Y130.72 from Y130.82.
        The WSJ Dollar Index, a measure of the dollar against a basket of major currencies, was down 0.02% at 86.78.
        Write to Hiroyuki Kachi at Hiroyuki.Kachi@wsj.com
        (END) Dow Jones Newswires

        March 25, 2015 01:17 ET (05:17 GMT)

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