Investing.com - The euro slipped lower on Wednesday but investors continued to remain hopeful for an agreement on a new financing arrangement for Greece, while the yen was steady after the Bank of Japan left monetary policy unchanged.
EUR/USD was down 0.18% to 1.1389 from 1.1410 late Tuesday.
Market participants remained optimistic that a new deal on Greece’s international bailout could be reached, despite a standoff between Athens and European officials after talks broke down on Monday.
Greece’s current €240 billion bailout is due to expire at the end of the month and the new Greek government does not want it extended. Athens rejected a proposed six-month extension of the bailout on Monday, calling it "unacceptable".
Athens has until Friday to request an extension otherwise its bailout will expire on February 28 and the country will run out of money, which could trigger the country’s exit from the euro zone.
The euro was also lower against the yen, with EUR/JPY sliding 0.20% to 135.79.
The yen showed a muted reaction after the BoJ kept monetary policy unchanged earlier Wednesday, in a widely anticipated decision.
USD/JPY was last at 119.17, little changed for the day.
The US Dollar Index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.14% to 94.29.
Investors were looking ahead to the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting later in the day for further indications on when U.S. interest rates could start to rise.