Investing.com - The dollar slipped lower against the yen and held steady against the euro on Friday, as investors awaited the release of key U.S. employment data due later in the day, for further indications on the strengh of the job market.
USD/JPY edged down 0.13% to 108.73, the lowest since May 16.
Investors were cautious after U.S. jobs data released on Thursday painted a mixed picture of the market.
Payroll processing firm ADP said non-farm private employment rose by 173,000 last month, just below expectations for an increase of 175,000.
Separately, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending May 28 decreased by 1,000 to 267,000 from the previous week’s total of 268,000.
Analysts had expected jobless claims to rise by 2,000 to 270,000 last week.
Meanwhile, the yen remained supported after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Tuesday he was planning to delay a scheduled sales tax hike amid ongoing weakness in the economy. He also announced plans to implement a fiscal stimulus package later this year.
EUR/USD was little changed at 1.1153.
On Thursday, the European Central Bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at a record-low 0.0%, in line with market expectations.
Speaking shortly after the decision, ECB President Mario Draghi warned that inflation in the euro area is likely to remain very low, or negative, for some time.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was steady at 95.53.