Investing.com - The yen held stronger in Asia on Thursday despite weak industrial output figures with investors increasingly focused on the willingness or ability of the central bank to take further easing measures.
USD/JPY changed hands at 102.69, down 0.14%, while AUD/USD traded at 0.7442, down 0.12%. GBP/USD reversed course and dipped 0.16% to 1.3409.
In Japan, preliminary industrial production for May plunged 2.3%, compared with a 0.1% fall seen month-on-month. In Austrlia housing credit for May rose 0.5%, with the previous month posting a 0.4% gain and private sector credit gained 0.4%, compared with an expected 0.5% rise month-on-month.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose 0.14% to 95.82.
Overnight, the dollar extended losses against the other major currencies on Wednesday, after the release of downbeat U.S. housing data, while renewed optimism following Britain’s decision to leave the European Union continued to support market sentiment.
The National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index fell by 3.7% last month, missing expectations for a decline of 1.1%. Pending home sales in April advanced 3.9%, whose figure was revised down from a previously reported gain of 5.1%.
The report came after the U.S. Commerce Department said that personal spending increased by 0.4% last month, matching expectations, while April’s number was revised up to a gain of 1.1% from a previously reported rise of 1.0% that had already been its largest increase in seven years.
Personal income, meanwhile, rose 0.2%, below forecasts for a 0.3% gain and after rising 0.5% a month earlier. April’s data was revised from an initial advance of 0.4%.
The pound came under broad selling pressure as fears that a Brexit could hit investment in the U.K. economy, threaten London's role as a global financial capital and usher in a period of slower global economic growth. EU leaders were to continue to discuss the implications of Brexit at a summit in Brussels on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, EU leaders said there would be no special deals from former members of the trading bloc.