Investing.com - The yen gained slightly in Asia on Tuesday ahead of a central bank policy review expected to stay pat on policy and as investors eyed regional PMI figures to gauge sentiment as a Fed rate review looms on Wednesday and nonfarm payrolls at the end of the week to be followed by the bitterly fought U.S. presidential election next week.
USD/JPY changed hands at 104.79, down 0.04%, while AUD/USD traded at 0.7608, down 0.05%. GBP/USD traded at 1.2224, down 0.12%.
The semi-official China Federation of Logistics & Purchasing (CFLP) manufacturing PMI for October came in at 51.2, data released on Tuesday showed, beating an expected 50.4, and the non-manufacturing PMI, rose to 54.0 from 53.7 in the previous month. Ahead comes the Caixin manufacturing PMI, which is expected at 50.2.
In Japan, the manufacturing PMI for October came in at 51.4, below the 51.7 level seen. Attention now turns to the Bank of Japan's latest policy review expected to stay the course after a major policy overhaul last month.
In other central bank action, a Reserve Bank of Australia's review of the cash rate is expected to hold steady at a record low 1.50%.
Earlier in Australia, the October AIG manufacturing index came in at 50.9, jumping into expansion territory compared to 49.8 last month. "The manufacturing sector would welcome the boost to investment that a reduction in the company tax rate would provide, even if it was limited to businesses with annual turnover of less than A$50 million," AI Group Chief Executive Innes Willox said.
An FBI review of more emails related to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's private server, just over a week before the election, has rattled markets and sparked worries about a surprise election outcome.
An ABC/Washington Post tracking survey released Sunday gave Clinton 46% support from likely voters, to Trump’s 45%. Clinton was ahead by 12 points a week earlier.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose 0.09% to 98.41.
Overnight, the dollar remained broadly higher against the other majors currencies in quiet trade on Monday, as optimism over the U.S. economy continued to support.
The Institute for Supply Management said its Chicago purchasing managers’ index decreased to 50.6 this month from a reading of 54.2 in September. Analysts had expected the index to drop to 54.0 in October.
The report came shortly after the U.S. Commerce Department said that consumer spending increased 0.5% in September, in line with expectations and compared to a decline of 0.1% in August.
Personal income, meanwhile, rose by 0.3% in September, compared to expectations for 0.4% advance, after rising 0.2% a month earlier.
The greenback was already supported after a stronger-than-forecast preliminary estimate of U.S. third quarter economic growth supported the case for the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates in December. Traders are currently pricing in a less than 10% chance of a rate hike this week, according to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool. For December, odds stood at 78%.