Forex - Dollar mostly lower amid quiet Asian trade

Investing.com - The U.S. dollar traded mostly lower against its major rivals in what is looking like another quiet Asian session on Tuesday. Markets in Hong Kong, Shanghai and others across the region remain closed for Chinese New Year festivities.

In Asian trading Tuesday, EUR/USD fell 0.03% to 1.3401 after rising 0.12% during Monday’s U.S. session. Comments from Jens Weidmann, European Central Bank member and president of Germany's central bank, regarding the euro not being overvalued helped lift the common currency as did some solid French economic data.

France's industrial output contracted by 0.1% in December from the month before, less than market calls for a 0.2% contraction though still down from November's 0.5% gain. France is the euro zone’s second-largest economy behind Germany.

GBP/USD was flat at 1.5660 after the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said its U.K. home price index slid to -4 last month from -1 in December. The measure of newly agreed upon sales jumped to 15 from 2, according to RICS.

USD/JPY dipped 0.11% to 94.24 following reports that Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso said he well the group of G20 nations at an upcoming meeting that Japan is trying to curb deflation, not manipulating the yen lower. Aso recently came under fire for comments about the yen weakening too quickly against the dollar, but Japan itself has been accused of manipulating the yen lower.

Some nations, including Germany and South Korea, have promised retaliatory action if the yen continues to plummet. Finance and central bank leaders from the G20 nations meet in Moscow on Friday and Saturday.

Elsewhere, USD/CHF rose 0.03% to 0.9207 while USD/CAD added 0.08% to 1.0058.

AUD/USD climbed 0.10% to 1.0266 even after reports that traders are increasing bets that the Reserve Bank of Australia will pare rates later this year. Some traders are betting on nearly 50 more basis points being shaved from RBA’s key overnight rate, currently 3%. Even a 25 basis point reduction to 2.75% would take Australian interest rates to a record low.

NZD/USD jumped 0.18% to 0.8366 while the U.S. Dollar Index added 0.06%.