The euro was 0.1 percent from its lowest level in more than two months on concern weakening inflation pressures in the region will prompt the European Central Bank to ease monetary policy.
The yen declined following its biggest monthly gain in almost two years before Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Kikuo Iwata speaks on Feb. 6 amid prospects the BOJ will persist with monetary stimulus. Australia’s dollar held gains from last week before the nation’s central bank sets interest rates tomorrow.
“I’d recommend selling euro-dollar on a rebound,” said Daisaku Ueno, the Tokyo-based chief currency strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co., a unit of Japan’s biggest financial group by market value. “There’s a good chance of additional monetary easing in the euro region if disinflation persists.”
The euro traded at $1.3493 as of 6:47 a.m. in London from $1.3486 in New York on Jan. 31, when it touched $1.3479, the weakest since Nov. 22. The yen was little changed per euro and dollar at 137.76 and 102.11 respectively. Japan’s currency appreciated 3.2 percent versus the greenback in January, the most since April 2012.
Bloomberg
