Investing.com – Most Asian currencies were little changed on Friday and the weekly performance will be subdued as markets remain confident that the Federal Reserve will not cut interest rates earlier this year.
Regional currencies received little relief from one-day losses in the dollar, which fell from a three-month high after data showed an unexpected contraction in retail sales in January.
But the dollar contained most of its losses after warning that the central bank may take longer to start cutting interest rates and that it was still unclear whether inflation would return to its 2% annual target.
And both rose 0.1% in Asian trade and are up about 0.3% this week, their fifth straight week of gains. Bostic’s comments also come just days after data showed inflation unexpectedly rose in January.
Inflation data and a speech later in the day are expected to provide more clues about the direction of US interest rates.
However, US Consumer Price Index data showed traders have begun to largely shrug off expectations that the Fed will cut rates as early as May or June. The deal weighed on most Asian currencies and put them on track for subdued weekly moves.
Yen hovers around 150 as markets weigh BOJ’s accommodative stance and intervention
The company’s shares were the worst performer among peers this week, down 0.6% and trading near a three-month low.
The yen was hurt by rising bets that the Bank of Japan will delay planned interest rate hikes this year, especially after Thursday’s data unexpectedly showed Japan in the fourth quarter.
The yen was trading at 150.2 per dollar. But the Japanese currency’s larger losses were limited by anticipation of potential government intervention in currency markets, given that weakness above the 150 level has led to government intervention in the past.
The fall was 0.2%, down from a fall of 0.1%, receiving little support from data that showed the country’s key measure rebounded more than expected in January.
The fall was 0.4%, while the rate fluctuated around the level of 83.
Easing bets that the Fed would cut interest rates soon hit Asian markets early in the year, with regional currencies showing little relief in the face of higher, longer-term US rates.